@article{WachsBilzWettsteinetal.2022, author = {Wachs, Sebastian and Bilz, Ludwig and Wettstein, Alexander and Wright, Michelle F. and Kansok-Dusche, Julia and Krause, Norman and Ballaschk, Cindy}, title = {Associations between witnessing and perpetrating online hate speech among adolescents}, series = {Psychology of violence}, volume = {12}, journal = {Psychology of violence}, number = {6}, publisher = {American Psychological Association}, address = {Washington}, issn = {2152-0828}, doi = {10.1037/vio0000422}, pages = {371 -- 381}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Objective: The open expression of hatred, hostility, and violence against minorities has become a common online phenomenon. Adolescents are at particular risk of being involved in different hate speech roles (e.g., witness, perpetrator). However, the correlates of their involvement as perpetrators and the mechanisms that might explain their involvement in hate speech across different roles have not yet been thoroughly investigated. To this end, this study investigates moral disengagement and empathy as correlates of online hate speech perpetration and the moderation effects of empathy and moral disengagement in the relationship between witnessing and perpetrating online hate speech. Method: The sample consists of 3,560 7th to 9th graders from 40 schools in Germany and Switzerland. Self-report questionnaires were utilized to assess online hate speech involvement, moral disengagement, and empathy. Results: Multilevel regression analyses revealed that moral disengagement and witnessing online hate speech were positively associated with online hate speech perpetration, while empathy was negatively associated with it. The findings also showed that the positive relationship between witnessing and perpetrating online hate speech was stronger at higher levels of moral disengagement and weaker when moral disengagement was low. The association between witnessing and perpetrating online hate speech was weaker when adolescents had higher rather than lower levels of empathy. Conclusions: The findings underscore the need for prevention efforts to accelerate moral engagement and empathy as critical future directions in hate speech prevention. This study also contributes to our understanding of underlying mechanisms that explain adolescents' involvement across different roles in hate speech.}, language = {en} } @article{WachsBilzWettsteinetal.2022, author = {Wachs, Sebastian and Bilz, Ludwig and Wettstein, Alexander and Wright, Michelle F. and Krause, Norman and Ballaschk, Cindy and Kansok-Dusche, Julia}, title = {The online hate speech cycle of violence}, series = {Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking}, volume = {25}, journal = {Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking}, number = {4}, publisher = {Liebert}, address = {New Rochelle}, issn = {2152-2715}, doi = {10.1089/cyber.2021.0159}, pages = {223 -- 229}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Adolescents around the globe are increasingly exposed to online hate speech (OHS). And yet little is known about the varying roles of involvement and the determinants of adolescents' hate speech perpetration. Building on previous research, this study aims to test the cycle of violence hypothesis for OHS and to analyze whether moral disengagement (MD) and empathy moderate the victim-to-perpetrator relationship. The sample consists of 3,560 seventh to ninth graders (52.1 percent girls), recruited from 40 schools across Germany and Switzerland. Self-report questionnaires were administered to assess OHS involvement, MD, and empathy. Multilevel analyses revealed that victims of OHS were more likely to report OHS perpetration. In addition, victims of OHS were more likely to report OHS perpetration when they reported higher levels of MD than those with lower levels of MD. Finally, victims of OHS were less likely to report OHS perpetration when they reported higher levels of empathy than those with lower levels of empathy. The findings extend the cycle of violence hypothesis to OHS and highlight the need to address MD and empathy in hate speech prevention. Implications for future research will be discussed.}, language = {en} } @article{SchwarzenthalJuangMoffittetal.2022, author = {Schwarzenthal, Miriam and Juang, Linda P. and Moffitt, Ursula and Schachner, Maja K.}, title = {Critical consciousness socialization at school}, series = {Journal of research on adolescence : the official journal of the Society for Research on Adolescence}, volume = {32}, journal = {Journal of research on adolescence : the official journal of the Society for Research on Adolescence}, number = {4}, publisher = {Wiley}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {1050-8392}, doi = {10.1111/jora.12713}, pages = {1452 -- 1469}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Schools are key contexts for the development of adolescents' critical consciousness. We explored how three dimensions of the classroom cultural diversity climate (critical consciousness, color-evasion, and multiculturalism) related to adolescents' critical reflection (i.e., perceived societal Islamophobia) and intended critical action (i.e., political activism). Our sample included adolescents experiencing high (second generation, Muslim, N = 237) versus low (non-immigrant descent, non-Muslim, N = 478) stigmatization in Germany. Multilevel analyses revealed that for both groups a critical consciousness climate, but not a color-evasive or a multicultural climate, was positively associated with perceived societal Islamophobia and intended critical action. Thus, to promote adolescents' critical consciousness, schools should go beyond emphasizing a common humanity and celebrating cultural diversity and include explicit discussions of social inequity.}, language = {en} } @article{MazzoneWachsFoodyetal.2022, author = {Mazzone, Angela and Wachs, Sebastian and Foody, Mairead and Blaya, Catherine}, title = {Editorial: A connected or isolated generation?}, series = {Frontiers in education}, volume = {7}, journal = {Frontiers in education}, publisher = {Frontiers Media}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {2504-284X}, doi = {10.3389/feduc.2022.999028}, pages = {3}, year = {2022}, language = {en} } @article{XieJiaRollsetal.2021, author = {Xie, Chao and Jia, Tianye and Rolls, Edmund T. and Robbins, Trevor W. and Sahakian, Barbara J. and Zhang, Jie and Liu, Zhaowen and Cheng, Wei and Luo, Qiang and Zac Lo, Chun-Yi and Schumann, Gunter and Feng, Jianfeng and Wang, He and Banaschewski, Tobias and Barker, Gareth J. and Bokde, Arun L.W. and B{\"u}chel, Christian and Quinlan, Erin Burke and Desrivi{\`e}res, Sylvane and Flor, Herta and Grigis, Antoine and Garavan, Hugh and Gowland, Penny and Heinz, Andreas and Hohmann, Sarah and Ittermann, Bernd and Martinot, Jean-Luc and Paill{\`e}re Martinot, Marie-Laure and Nees, Frauke and Papadopoulos Orfanos, Dimitri and Paus, Tom{\´a}š and Poustka, Luise and Fr{\"o}hner, Juliane H. and Smolka, Michael N. and Walter, Henrik and Whelan, Robert}, title = {Reward versus nonreward sensitivity of the medial versus lateral orbitofrontal cortex relates to the severity of depressive symptoms}, series = {Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging}, volume = {6}, journal = {Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging}, number = {3}, publisher = {Elsevier Science}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {0006-3223}, doi = {10.1016/j.bpsc.2020.08.017}, pages = {259 -- 269}, year = {2021}, abstract = {BACKGROUND: The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is implicated in depression. The hypothesis investigated was whether the OFC sensitivity to reward and nonreward is related to the severity of depressive symptoms. METHODS: Activations in the monetary incentive delay task were measured in the IMAGEN cohort at ages 14 years (n = 1877) and 19 years (n = 1140) with a longitudinal design. Clinically relevant subgroups were compared at ages 19 (high-severity group: n = 116; low-severity group: n = 206) and 14. RESULTS: The medial OFC exhibited graded activation increases to reward, and the lateral OFC had graded activation increases to nonreward. In this general population, the medial and lateral OFC activations were associated with concurrent depressive symptoms at both ages 14 and 19 years. In a stratified high-severity depressive symptom group versus control group comparison, the lateral OFC showed greater sensitivity for the magnitudes of activations related to nonreward in the high-severity group at age 19 (p = .027), and the medial OFC showed decreased sensitivity to the reward magnitudes in the high-severity group at both ages 14 (p = .002) and 19 (p = .002). In a longitudinal design, there was greater sensitivity to nonreward of the lateral OFC at age 14 for those who exhibited high depressive symptom severity later at age 19 (p = .003). CONCLUSIONS: Activations in the lateral OFC relate to sensitivity to not winning, were associated with high depressive symptom scores, and at age 14 predicted the depressive symptoms at ages 16 and 19. Activations in the medial OFC were related to sensitivity to winning, and reduced reward sensitivity was associated with concurrent high depressive symptom scores.}, language = {en} } @article{WachsGamezGuadixWright2022, author = {Wachs, Sebastian and Gamez-Guadix, Manuel and Wright, Michelle F.}, title = {Online hate speech victimization and depressive symptoms among adolescents}, series = {Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking}, volume = {25}, journal = {Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking}, number = {7}, publisher = {Liebert}, address = {New Rochelle}, issn = {2152-2715}, doi = {10.1089/cyber.2022.0009}, pages = {416 -- 423}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Online hate speech has become a widespread problem in the daily life of adolescents. Despite growing societal and academic interest in this online risk, not much is known about the relationship between online hate speech victimization (OHSV) and adolescents' mental well-being. In addition, potential factors influencing the magnitude of this relationship remain unclear. To address these gaps in the literature, this study investigated the relationship between OHSV and depressive symptoms and the buffering effects of resilience in this relationship. The sample consists of 1,632 adolescents (49.1\% girls) between 12 and 18 years old (M-age = 13.83, SDage = 1.23), recruited from nine schools across Spain. Self-report questionnaires were administered to assess OHSV, depressive symptoms, and resilience. Regression analyses revealed that OHSV was positively linked to depressive symptoms. In addition, victims of online hate speech were less likely to report depressive symptoms when they reported average or high levels of resilience (i.e., social competence, personal competence, structured style, social resources, and family cohesion) compared with those with low levels of resilience. Our findings highlight the need for the development of intervention programs and the relevance of focusing on internal and external developmental assets to mitigate negative outcomes for victims of online hate speech.}, language = {en} } @article{KansokDuscheBallaschkKrauseetal.2022, author = {Kansok-Dusche, Julia and Ballaschk, Cindy and Krause, Norman and Zeissig, Anke and Seemann-Herz, Lisanne and Wachs, Sebastian and Bilz, Ludwig}, title = {A systematic review on hate speech among children and adolescents}, series = {Trauma, violence \& abuse : a review journal}, volume = {24}, journal = {Trauma, violence \& abuse : a review journal}, number = {4}, publisher = {Sage Publ.}, address = {Thousand Oaks}, issn = {1524-8380}, doi = {10.1177/15248380221108070}, pages = {2598 -- 2615}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Little is known about the current state of research on the involvement of young people in hate speech. Thus, this systematic review presents findings on a) the prevalence of hate speech among children and adolescents and on hate speech definitions that guide prevalence assessments for this population; and b) the theoretical and empirical overlap of hate speech with related concepts. This review was guided by the Cochrane approach. To be included, publications were required to deal with real-life experiences of hate speech, to provide empirical data on prevalence for samples aged 5 to 21 years and they had to be published in academic formats. Included publications were full-text coded using two raters (kappa = .80) and their quality was assessed. The string-guided electronic search (ERIC, SocInfo, Psycinfo, Psyndex) yielded 1,850 publications. Eighteen publications based on 10 studies met the inclusion criteria and their findings were systematized. Twelve publications were of medium quality due to minor deficiencies in their theoretical or methodological foundations. All studies used samples of adolescents and none of younger children. Nine out of 10 studies applied quantitative methodologies. Eighteen publications based on 10 studies were included. Results showed that frequencies for hate speech exposure were higher than those related to victimization and perpetration. Definitions of hate speech and assessment instruments were heterogeneous. Empirical evidence for an often theorized overlap between hate speech and bullying was found. The paper concludes by presenting a definition of hate speech, including implications for practice, policy, and research.}, language = {en} } @article{WachsCastellanosWettsteinetal.2023, author = {Wachs, Sebastian and Castellanos, Melisa and Wettstein, Alexander and Bilz, Ludwig and Gamez-Guadix, Manuel}, title = {Associations between classroom climate, empathy, self-efficacy, and countering hate speech among adolescents}, series = {Journal of interpersonal violence : concerned with the study and treatment of victims and perpetrators of physical and sexual violence}, volume = {38}, journal = {Journal of interpersonal violence : concerned with the study and treatment of victims and perpetrators of physical and sexual violence}, number = {5-6}, publisher = {Sage Publ.}, address = {Thousand Oaks}, issn = {1552-6518}, doi = {10.1177/08862605221120905}, pages = {5067 -- 5091}, year = {2023}, abstract = {Although hate speech is widely recognized as an online phenomenon, very few studies have investigated hate speech among adolescents in offline settings (e.g., schools). At the same time, not much is known about countering hate speech (counterspeech) among adolescents and which factors are associated with it. To this end, the present study used the socio-ecological framework to investigate the direct and indirect links among one contextual factor (i.e., classroom climate) and two intrapersonal factors (i.e., empathy for victims of hate speech, self-efficacy regarding intervention in hate speech) to understand counterspeech among adolescents. The sample is based on self-reports of 3,225 students in Grades 7 to 9 (51.7\% self-identified as female) from 36 schools in Germany and Switzerland. Self-report questionnaires were administered to measure classroom climate, empathy, self-efficacy, and counterspeech. After controlling for adolescents' grade, gender, immigrant background, and socioeconomic status (SES), the 2-(1-1)-1 multilevel mediation analysis showed that classroom climate (L2), empathy for victims of hate speech (L1), and self-efficacy toward intervention in hate speech (L1) had a positive effect on countering hate speech (L1). Classroom climate (L2) was also positively linked to empathy for victims of hate speech (L1), and self-efficacy toward intervention in hate speech (L1). Furthermore, classroom climate (L2) was indirectly associated with countering hate speech (L1) via greater empathy (L1) and self-efficacy (L1). The findings highlight the need to focus on contextual and intrapersonal factors when trying to facilitate adolescents' willingness to face hate speech with civic courage and proactively engage against it.}, language = {en} } @article{MuehlenbeckPritschWartenburgeretal.2020, author = {M{\"u}hlenbeck, Cordelia Anna and Pritsch, Carla and Wartenburger, Isabell and Telkemeyer, Silke and Liebal, Katja}, title = {Attentional bias to facial expressions of different emotions}, series = {Frontiers in psychology}, volume = {11}, journal = {Frontiers in psychology}, publisher = {Frontiers Research Foundation}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {1664-1078}, doi = {10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00795}, pages = {9}, year = {2020}, abstract = {The attentional bias to negative information enables humans to quickly identify and to respond appropriately to potentially threatening situations. Because of its adaptive function, the enhanced sensitivity to negative information is expected to represent a universal trait, shared by all humans regardless of their cultural background. However, existing research focuses almost exclusively on humans from Western industrialized societies, who are not representative for the human species. Therefore, we compare humans from two distinct cultural contexts: adolescents and children from Germany, a Western industrialized society, and from the not equal Akhoe Hai parallel to om, semi-nomadic hunter-gatherers in Namibia. We predicted that both groups show an attentional bias toward negative facial expressions as compared to neutral or positive faces. We used eye-tracking to measure their fixation duration on facial expressions depicting different emotions, including negative (fear, anger), positive (happy), and neutral faces. Both Germans and the not equal Akhoe Hai parallel to om gazed longer at fearful faces, but shorter on angry faces, challenging the notion of a general bias toward negative emotions. For happy faces, fixation durations varied between the two groups, suggesting more flexibility in the response to positive emotions. Our findings emphasize the need for placing research on emotion perception into an evolutionary, cross-cultural comparative framework that considers the adaptive significance of specific emotions, rather than differentiating between positive and negative information, and enables systematic comparisons across participants from diverse cultural backgrounds.}, language = {en} } @article{KunyuJuangSchachneretal.2021, author = {Kunyu, David Khisoni and Juang, Linda P. and Schachner, Maja Katharina and Schwarzenthal, Miriam}, title = {Discrimination among youth of immigrant descent in Germany}, series = {Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Entwicklungspsychologie und p{\"a}dagogische Psychologie}, volume = {52}, journal = {Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Entwicklungspsychologie und p{\"a}dagogische Psychologie}, number = {3-4}, publisher = {Hogrefe}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, issn = {0049-8637}, doi = {10.1026/0049-8637/a000231}, pages = {88 -- 102}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Ethnic discrimination has a negative impact on the socioemotional, behavioral, relational, and academic adjustment ofadolescents, while belonging with classmates, teachers, heritage, and national group may promote positive socioemotional and academicadjustment. We investigate (1) whether greater discrimination by peers and a lower sense of belonging with classmates, teachers, heritagegroup, and national group are associated with lower socioemotional and academic adjustment of adolescents of immigrant descent inGermany; and (2) whether a sense of belonging with these different sources acts as a protective factor lowering the negative effects ofdiscrimination on adjustment. Our sample included 439 7th-grade adolescents (51\% female,Mage= 12.4 years) of immigrant descent from15 Berlin secondary schools. Results showed that higher discrimination was related to greater physiological stress, depressive symptoms,and disruptive school behavior. Higher heritage (but not national) identity, a higher sense of belonging with classmates and with teacherswere associated with better socioemotional and academic adjustment. An examination of interaction effects between discrimination andforms of belonging on adjustment revealed that, while the association between discrimination and poorer adjustment weakened for thosewith higher heritage identity, the association between discrimination and physiological stress increased for those with higher teacherrelatedness. We conclude that heritage identity (but not national identity or sense of belonging with classmates) can indeed be a protectivefactor against the negative effects of discrimination for adolescents of immigrant descent in Germany. Even though belonging with teachersmay exacerbate discrimination effects, further investigation with longitudinal data is needed. The findings underline the important role ofheritage ties among adolescents of immigrant descent as a source of adjustment, especially in light of discrimination experiences.}, language = {en} }