Research master thesis | Psychology (research) (MSc)
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Humans regularly face collective problems calling for cooperation. To solve such problems, people can establish public goods that require contributions from individual members and benefit the whole...Show moreHumans regularly face collective problems calling for cooperation. To solve such problems, people can establish public goods that require contributions from individual members and benefit the whole group, e.g. public health care and infrastructure. It has been suggested that in modern society people have become less dependent on the creation of public goods and more able to solve problems individually (Santos, Varnum, & Grossmann, 2017). Nevertheless, solving shared problems individually is tied to resources that are often unequally distributed between people. Inequality (Zelmer, 2003) and individualism (Gross & De Dreu, 2019) can complicate cooperation, however, their interplay is largely unknown. We confronted 50 groups (N = 200) with a public goods game with the additional option to solve a shared problem individually through a private solution. Across groups, group members had either an equal or an unequal resource distribution. The private solution allowed wealthier group members to leave the group and avoid contributing to the public good. This resulted in increased inequality. Specifically, the easier it was to opt for a private solution, the higher the inequality was. We further investigated voting preferences and fairness perceptions by having sixty-one impartial raters complete the task from a third-party perspective. The third-party players preferred a more equitable solution that would result in lower inequality. While group members dependent on the public solution voted for delegating allocation decisions to the third party, the wealthier, and thus, more independent members voted against it revealing self-serving motives. Our findings highlight unique problems emerging with self-reliance in the face of global issues, such as a pandemic and global warming, that require cooperation. Especially, when self-reliance is only affordable for some, collective action can fail and further increase wealth gaps.Show less
Background: Anxiety is one of the most common mental health problems among older adults. Although there are interventions that effectively reduce late-life anxiety, anxious older adults often do...Show moreBackground: Anxiety is one of the most common mental health problems among older adults. Although there are interventions that effectively reduce late-life anxiety, anxious older adults often do not receive adequate treatment and are less likely to benefit from psychotherapy, compared to younger adults. To enhance mental health services for the elderly, studies should explore which factors predict treatment outcomes, rather than solely focus on the overall treatment effectiveness. The aim of the present study is to investigate demographic (age and gender) and professional (years of working experience and geriatric education) therapeutic characteristics, as predictors of treatment outcomes (anxiety severity and treatment satisfaction) in anxious older adults. Methods: The study is a post-hoc analysis using data from a previous Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) on treatment effectiveness in older adults with anxiety complaints. We examined data from 275 patients (55-75 years old) and 33 therapists, who worked in general practices in the Netherlands. We developed two multilevel regression models and intercept-only models, for both therapeutic outcomes. Results: The analyses showed that none of the therapeutic characteristics significantly predicted anxiety severity and treatment satisfaction at posttreatment; the therapist factor explained 0% and 15% of the variance in older adults’ anxiety and satisfaction levels, respectively. Discussion: Possible lack of power in the study hinders the interpretation of the null-findings regarding the demographic and professional therapist characteristics. The therapist factor does not predict late-life anxiety, but does have an effect on patients’ satisfaction. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are discussed.Show less
