Deze bachelorscriptie onderzoekt descriptieve representatie op gemeenteniveau in Nederland. Dit onderzoek kijkt als een van de eerste onderzoeken naar descriptieve representatie als afhankelijke...Show moreDeze bachelorscriptie onderzoekt descriptieve representatie op gemeenteniveau in Nederland. Dit onderzoek kijkt als een van de eerste onderzoeken naar descriptieve representatie als afhankelijke variabele. Hiermee wordt een wetenschappelijke bijdrage geleverd door te onderzoeken welke factoren een invloed hebben op de mate van descriptieve representatie. In dit onderzoek worden regressieanalyses gebruikt om te onderzoeken of er een correlatie bestaat tussen descriptieve representatie van vrouwen, mensen met een migratieachtergrond en leeftijd als afhankelijke variabelen. Daarnaast gaat het in dit onderzoek om het aandeel hoogopgeleiden, gemiddeld inkomen per persoon en de mate van religieuze aanhang in een gemeente als onafhankelijke variabele. Er wordt geconcludeerd dat opleidingsniveau een positief verband kent met descriptieve representatie. Gemiddeld inkomen kent een negatief verband bij descriptieve representatie van vrouwen en voor mensen van de leeftijd van 18 tot en met 35 jaar. De mate van religieuze aanhang heeft een negatief effect op de descriptieve representatie van vrouwen. Voor migratieachtergrond en leeftijd zijn er in dit onderzoek geen statistisch significante verbanden gevonden.Show less
Over the course of the last century, the Japanese population has left their humble hometowns and moved to large population centres. Now Japan experiences one of the worst population declines in the...Show moreOver the course of the last century, the Japanese population has left their humble hometowns and moved to large population centres. Now Japan experiences one of the worst population declines in the modern era and especially the countryside is shrinking at a rapid rate. This has prompted the government to implement measures to slow down the depopulation of the countryside and boost local economies. One of these measures is the furusato nozei tax system, which distributes a part of people’s inhabitant taxes towards other municipalities than the one they live in so that people may donate a share of their taxes to their hometown or any other municipality. This system may be tied to a general feeling of nostalgia that the Japanese people have towards their hometown or other places that generally evoke a sense of nostalgia as people have become desensitized with their current lives that sharply contrast with the calm and peaceful image of the Japanese countryside. Within the furusato nozei system, municipalities advertise themselves as the ‘ideal hometown’ by catering to peoples’ emotions towards those towns that people feel a certain connection with, but how do these emotions of nostalgia emerge in practice within the program? Do municipalities utilise nostalgia as a tool to draw in donations, and in what ways do they do this? Furusato on itself means something like ‘hometown’ or ‘native place’, but does this materialise in the self-marketing schemes of certain municipalities? By looking at two municipalities’ homepages and other websites, this paper determines that symbols of nostalgia are indeed drawn upon in the self-marketing schemes to gain more revenue in the program in the form of images, phrases, etc. These symbols evoke warm and nostalgic feelings and in a way reflect the state of the towns. Moreover, one may identify two ‘types’ of furusato on these homepages: either ‘emotional longing to one’s hometown’ or ‘nostalgia towards an older version of Japan in general’, which materialise to various degrees depending on the image that the towns want to impose on itself and the audience that they are trying to reach.Show less
The severe consequences of climate change are effecting people worldwide. To minimize the negative effects of climate change, it is important to increase our pro-environmental behavior. This study...Show moreThe severe consequences of climate change are effecting people worldwide. To minimize the negative effects of climate change, it is important to increase our pro-environmental behavior. This study explored the underlying factors within the environmental attitude – behavior gap among young adults by investigating the mediating role of descriptive environmental norms between environmental attitudes and pro-environmental behavior of young adults, moderated by social connectedness. Data was collected from 216 young adults using self-report questionnaires. The moderated mediation model using Hayes PROCESS macro (model 14) was conducted to test the study hypothesis. Results showed there was no significant moderated mediation. Environmental attitudes were not significantly associated with either pro-environmental behavior or descriptive environmental norms. However, descriptive environmental norms showed a significant positive association with pro-environmental behavior (t = 6.86, p < .001, 95% CI [0.27, 0.49]). Furthermore, social connectedness significantly moderated the association between descriptive environmental norms and pro-environmental behavior, with lower social connectedness strengthening this association (t = -2.39, p = .018, 95% CI [-0.23, 0.02]). These findings provide a better understanding of what drives young adults to pro-environmental behavior and can contribute to more targeted campaigns to encourage young adults to pro-environmental behavior.Show less
Background: Child welfare services face substantial challenges in managing out-of-home placements, with various risk factors influencing the duration and outcomes of these placements. Research has...Show moreBackground: Child welfare services face substantial challenges in managing out-of-home placements, with various risk factors influencing the duration and outcomes of these placements. Research has shown that both maternal and child characteristics can significantly impact the stability and length of these out-of-home placements, yet there is a lack of comprehensive studies examining these relationships within the Dutch context. Understanding these factors is crucial for developing effective interventions and support mechanisms. That is why this study aims to investigate the associations between the duration of out-of-home placements and maternal and child risk factors, as well as the role of help provided during the placement. Method: A case file analysis was conducted of 199 children (104 boys, 95 girls) within the Dutch child welfare system. The data was collected from randomly selected case files from various certified agencies across the Netherlands. The study employes both correlation and regression analysis to examine the relationship between the variables. Results: Correlation analysis revealed a significant negative correlation between maternal risk factors and the child’s age and a significant positive correlation with the duration of the placement and the amount of help provided during the placement. Child risk factors were positively correlated with the child’s age and negatively correlated with maternal risk factors. Regression analysis confirmed that maternal risk factors and help during the placement are significant predictors of the duration of out-of-home placements. Conclusions: This study underscores the importance of targeted interventions addressing maternal risk factors and providing psycho-education for mothers regarding their role in the duration of out-of-home placements. Additionally, it is crucial to ensure that access to support services is easy and straightforward for mothers, to encourage their engagement and participation in available interventions.Show less
Previous research has argued the importance of education for future gains (Palomino et al., 2019) and how inequality can negatively affect educational aspirations (Jia et al., 2021). Therefore,...Show morePrevious research has argued the importance of education for future gains (Palomino et al., 2019) and how inequality can negatively affect educational aspirations (Jia et al., 2021). Therefore, this study aimed to further demonstrate whether differences in perceptions of inequality of opportunity and outcome negatively affects students’ educational aspirations. Further, based on previous research demonstrating positive main effect of internal locus of control (Sagone & Caroli, 2014) and a moderating effect of internal locus of control (Jia et al., 2021) on educational outcomes, locus of control was added as a moderator to see if an internal locus of control offsets negative effects of inequality on educational aspirations. Our manipulation, videos explaining inequality of opportunity and outcome, failed to tease apart perceptions of inequality of opportunity and outcome and were consequently combined into one factor, inequality. We found no significant main effect of perception of inequality, but a significant positive main effect of locus of control on educational aspirations. An interaction effect between perceptions of inequality and locus of control on educational aspirations was found. However, unexpectedly, students perceiving inequality within the external locus of control group scored highest on educational aspirations. Implications, limitations, and avenues for further research are discussed.Show less
The exam period can be stressful for students, significantly impacting their lifestyle behaviours. Research indicates that students tend to have poorer diets during exam periods, with stress and...Show moreThe exam period can be stressful for students, significantly impacting their lifestyle behaviours. Research indicates that students tend to have poorer diets during exam periods, with stress and sleep quality potentially influencing this pattern. The decline in diet quality among university students during examinations is a significant social issue that needs to further understanding. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between exam stress and perceived changes in food choice -healthy or unhealthy eating- during an exam period among university students aged 18 to 25 and to assess to what extent this relationship is mediated by sleep quality during an exam period. Utilizing a cross-sectional design, data was collected from 200 Dutch university students who completed three questionnaires, the Examination Stress Scale, a questionnaire about changes in food choice during an exam period and the Regensburg Insomnia Scale. A mediation analysis was conducted using linear regressions in SPSS. The results indicated no significant relationship between exam stress and changes in food choice (β = .042 , p = .558). There was a significant positive relationship between exam stress and poor sleep quality (β = .44, p < .001). No significant association was found between sleep quality and changes in food choice (β = -.02, p < .770). When controlling for sleep quality, exam stress was still not associated with changes in food choices (β = .05, p < .514). Thus, the present study concluded that there is no relationship between exam stress and perceived changes in food choice -healthy or unhealthy eating- among university students ages 18 to 25 and that this relationship is not mediated by sleep quality during exams. However, there was a significant relationship between exam stress and poor sleep quality. Prevention strategies for exam stress and poor sleep should include stress management and education about the importance of sufficient sleep.Show less
Seeking to more profoundly understand the nexus between race and class in Brazil, and comprehend its implications for political consciousness, this thesis centres the question: “How is political...Show moreSeeking to more profoundly understand the nexus between race and class in Brazil, and comprehend its implications for political consciousness, this thesis centres the question: “How is political consciousness of Afro-Brazilian emancipation movements informed by class interests?” In this capacity, class interests are interpreted as racialised consciousness, derived from the neo- Marxist theory of racialisation, a lens that figures prominently in this study. Remaining open to alternative explanations, through exploring discourse of Afro-Brazilian movement Black Coalition for Rights, this study concludes that two forms of consciousness theoretically assumed to be different are both built on similar premises that recognise the role of capitalist structures in processes of racialisation.Show less
Depression and anxiety are increasingly prevalent and often co-occur in adolescence. Symptoms of stress are a commonality of these disorders. However, the role of this commonality in the co...Show moreDepression and anxiety are increasingly prevalent and often co-occur in adolescence. Symptoms of stress are a commonality of these disorders. However, the role of this commonality in the co-occurrence remains unknown. This cross-sectional study investigated the co-occurrence of depression, anxiety, and stress in adolescence using the network psychometrics approach. We obtained our data from the Open-Source Psychometrics Project. The data consisted of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS)-42 (N = 25,086, ages 13-24 years old). We estimated Gaussian Graphical Models (i.e., partial correlations between nodes) and analyzed the bridge nodes. Bridge nodes are nodes of the network that are most influential in connecting the different disorders. We expected the bridge nodes to be the overlapping symptoms found among depression, anxiety, and stress as indicated in the DSM-V. Moreover, to examine whether bridge nodes were consistent across adolescence, we divided our sample into three age groups: early adolescence (ages 13-15, N = 2,354), middle adolescence (ages 16-19, N = 9,476) and late adolescence (ages 20-24, N = 13,256). Our findings of the full sample adolescent network indicated that symptoms of restlessness (stress) and negative mood (depression) served as bridge nodes, which was in line with our hypothesis. Other bridge nodes, not in line with our hypothesis, were symptoms of subjective experience of anxiety (anxiety) and situational anxiety (anxiety). Bridge nodes exclusive to the late adolescent network were: Finding it hard to wind down (stress) and feeling terrified (anxiety). Moreover, relief after anxious situations (anxiety) was uniquely present in the early and late adolescent networks. This study expands the current theoretical knowledge by, for the first time to our knowledge, including stress symptoms in the network models and by comparing the different adolescent age groups using a broad age range (13 to 24 years). Future research should examine whether clinicians can successfully incorporate this knowledge into transdiagnostic treatment interventions, which could contribute to better overall mental health.Show less
Teacher shortage is a significant issue in the Netherlands affecting the entire country, but especially impacting schools in larger cities, where education is particularly important. As a result,...Show moreTeacher shortage is a significant issue in the Netherlands affecting the entire country, but especially impacting schools in larger cities, where education is particularly important. As a result, the children at those schools are more severely affected by the shortage and the shortage therefore acts as a catalyst for social inequality. Strategies to prevent teacher attrition and to promote teacher retention remain unclear. Therefore, in this thesis the motivating and demotivating factors for being a teacher in The Hague were examined. Through interviewing primary education teachers (n=5) and secondary education teachers (n=5) in The Hague, along with a literature study, was attempted to define those factors. The self-determination theory was used as a framework to describe the motivation of teachers. Results showed that fulfilling the basic psychological needs could motivate teachers in their work, while failure to satisfy the basic needs could demotivate teachers. Autonomy seemed crucial, including involvement in decision-making, feeling heard and professional development aligned with personal interests. Relatedness seemed to be fostered through positive student-teacher relationships and the sense of contributing to students' development. Competence seemed to be undermined by illegitimate tasks, yet a strong bond with students made teachers feel competent along with good results from students. The findings of this study can be used in educating school leaders in motivating their teachers. It is hoped that this thesis forms a starting point towards a better understanding of teachers' motivation.Show less
Background: Coffin-Siris Syndrome (CSS) is a rare genetic disorder caused by de novo mutations in the BAF-complex, resulting in severe developmental delays. Despite insights from case studies, the...Show moreBackground: Coffin-Siris Syndrome (CSS) is a rare genetic disorder caused by de novo mutations in the BAF-complex, resulting in severe developmental delays. Despite insights from case studies, the relationship between developmental characteristics of CSS-affected children and parental caregiving burden remains underexplored. Method: This study mainly aimed to investigate to what extent language proficiency and adaptive functioning predict the parental caregiving burden for CSS-affected children, whilst accounting for the chronological age of the children. Data were collected using standardized questionnaires to assess language proficiency (PPVT, CELF-4-NL, CELF-Preschool-2-NL), adaptive functioning (ABAS-3-NL) and parental caregiving burden (OBVL). The sample included 26 CSS-affected children aged 4-18 years (M = 10.30 years, SD = 4.23 years), recruited from the LUMC expert clinic and patient associations in the Netherlands and Belgium. Results: Language comprehension did not correlate significantly with parental caregiving burden. The correlation remained non-significant after controlling for chronological age. Similar patterns were observed between language comprehension and adaptive functioning and between adaptive functioning and caregiving burden. Chronological age significantly correlated positively with language comprehension (r = 0.43, p = 0.04), and a trend was observed for a negative correlation between age and adaptive functioning (r = -0.39, p = 0.08). Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that neither language comprehension nor adaptive functioning significantly predicted parental caregiving burden (R² = 0.13; F(2,15) = 1.130; p = .349). even after controlling for chronological age (R² = 0.148; F(3,15) = 1.199, p = .315). Conclusion: Despite exploring language proficiency, adaptive functioning, and chronological age in CSS-affected children, no significant predictors were identified for parental caregiving burden. Further research is needed to deepen our understanding of the developmental trajectories and caregiving dynamics within CSS-affected families.Show less
Former recent research has shown a worrying trend in current reading skills of Dutch youth, indicating that more young people are leaving school with low literacy. Differences in literary skills...Show moreFormer recent research has shown a worrying trend in current reading skills of Dutch youth, indicating that more young people are leaving school with low literacy. Differences in literary skills exist and increase at early ages. It is important to close the gap early so that every child gets an equal opportunity to develop their literary skills. This research evaluates the effectiveness of digital readingaloud programs aimed at developing early literary skills, such as broad and deep vocabulary which form the basis for later reading comprehension. The role of active attention is studied, as differences in active attention during the reading-aloud programs might cause differences in effectiveness of the program on developing reading skills. Different reading-aloud programs are used in pre-school classrooms (groups 1 and 2 in the Dutch education system) during several weeks. A total of 88 toddlers, of which 53 girls, have participated. Participants’ levels of broad and deep vocabulary are measured prior to following the programs and each time after following one of the programs. Active attention is measured using observations. Results indicated a strong effect for the development of broad vocabulary over the programs, where a program with instructions focused on semantics had the strongest effects. Students with higher degrees of active attention showed greater increases in broad vocabulary. Deep vocabulary develops to a lesser extent and additional instructions from the teacher did not show stronger effects. Toddlers with different degrees of active attention seemed to develop their deep vocabulary similarly. Active attention might play a smaller role in the development of broad and deep vocabulary than previously thought. Follow-up research should be aimed at the development of programs that are effective for every child, especially for those at risk of falling behind.Show less
Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) is a syndrome characterized by a decline in various cognitive domains, including prospective episodic memory (PEM) and executive functions (EF). It has been...Show moreMild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) is a syndrome characterized by a decline in various cognitive domains, including prospective episodic memory (PEM) and executive functions (EF). It has been recognized recently that vascular risk factors (VRF), such as hypertension, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia, can also have detrimental effects on these cognitive domains. Less research has been conducted on the synergistic influence of MCI and VRF on cognition, with available studies providing mixed results. Moreover, only one study has been conducted on the topic regarding the Greek population, so more research is needed to account for possible differences in ethnicity-related variables. Therefore, we sought to investigate how MCI with comorbid VRF influence PEM and EF, compared to VRF alone and healthy ageing. A sample of 111 Greek older adults participated in the study, divided into three groups: patients with MCI and concomitant VRF, patients with VRF and healthy controls. To assess cognition, tests were used to measure PEM, interference control, flexibility and semantic and phonemic verbal fluency. Data were analysed using MANCOVA, controlling for the educational level of the participants. Results showed that there were no differences between the two pathological groups for any of the measures, but the healthy controls outperformed the MCI+VRF (adjusted mean difference of total score being 8.94, 95 % confidence interval (CI) [3.67, 14.20], p < .001) and the VRF group (adjusted mean difference of total score being 8.20, 95% CI [2.94, 13.46], p < .001) in the semantic fluency task. Indeed, literature has shown that both MCI and VRF affect the integrity of frontal networks, which mainly support EF function. Methodological differences, such as the older age of the sample and the simplicity of the PEM task, ethnic differences and limitations in the statistical analysis can possibly account for the discrepancies with previous studies. All in all, this study suggests that there are no differences in cognition between VRF and MCI+VRF patients, while emphasizing the need for and more research into the cognitive consequences of comorbid MCI and VRF both in the Greek population and internationally.Show less
