In her research on exploited labor, CNR-IRPPS researcher Antonella Ciocia has dedicated an in-depth study to the situation of research workers in Italy and the recent demands of precarious staff at the National Research Council.
The testimony of these experiences is condensed in the audio narrative “Precarious Research”.
On February 17, a serious act of racism was committed against the Italian Romanes community in the Municipality of Acquappesa, in the province of Cosenza. The plaque placed to commemorate the Samudaripen (the Nazi-Fascist genocide of the Roma, Sinti, and Manouches) was desecrated: broken in half and thrown onto the street.
Through research work carried out within various projects, most recently Regard (REmembering Genocide Against Roma Discrimination) and ACE (Active Citizenship in Europe Roma participation against discrimination. Building trust between Roma communities and civil society), CNR-IRPPS contributes to the respect for the rights of minorities in Italy and to the fight against anti-Gypsyism.
In denouncing the gravity of this event, which affects a community present in Italy for over six centuries, the Institute reaffirms its commitment, together with other social organizations such as the Union of Italian Romanes Communities and cultural figures, to counter anti-Gypsyism and to promote the inclusion of Roma and Sinti.
The National Research Council (CNR), through the Institute of Clinical Physiology (Lecce Branch), the Institute of Applied Mathematics and Information Technologies (Milan Branch), and the Institute of Research on Population and Social Policies (Research Unit at Third Parties in Brindisi), in collaboration with the San Raffaele Telematic University of Rome, is promoting a survey on Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and Physical Activity Levels in Children Attending Primary and Lower Secondary Schools in Puglia and Basilicata.
The study aims to identify intervention strategies to promote healthy lifestyles.
For its implementation, parents or legal guardians of pupils attending primary and lower secondary schools in Puglia and Basilicata are invited to complete a brief online questionnaire.
The questionnaire is anonymous and is hosted on the CNR LimeSurvey platform, which does not perform computer tracking and does not provide for the storage of collected data once downloaded.
By accessing the platform through the link: https://survey.cnr.it/index.php?r=survey/index&sid=674737&lang=it it will be possible to find further information about the project, review the information notices (for parents and, if desired, also for minors), and then complete the questionnaire.
An increasing number of adolescents are living in a condition of isolation, hyperconnectivity, and exposure to the risk of cyberbullying. This is the picture outlined by two important studies published between January and February 2025 by the MUSA (Social Change, Evaluation and Methods) research group at CNR-IRPPS, with contributions from Antonio Tintori, Loredana Cerbara, and Giulia Ciancimino.
The first study, entitled “Self-isolation of adolescents after Covid-19 pandemic between social withdrawal and Hikikomori risk in Italy“, was published in the journal Scientific Reports of the Nature group. Based on data from two cross-sectional surveys conducted in 2019 and 2022 on nationally representative samples of 3,273 and 4,288 adolescents aged 14 to 19, the research highlights a concerning trend: the number of young people who no longer meet their friends outside the school setting has nearly doubled following the Covid-19 pandemic.
A few weeks later, the journal Societies (MDPI) published a second study, “Sociopsychological Analysis of a Highly Vulnerable Category of Adolescents: Victim-Perpetrators of Cyberbullying from a Wide National Survey of Italian Adolescents“, conducted by the same group. This research examines the phenomenon of cyberbullying among young people in Italy, analyzing the factors that influence the likelihood of becoming victims or perpetrators of cyberbullying episodes. Among the most significant aspects are gender, age, geographical origin, excessive digital connectivity, and low trust in adults.
Both studies have generated considerable interest in public debate, bringing to light dynamics that are often overlooked but increasingly relevant.
Below is a list of contributions published in recent weeks aimed at a broader audience.
Press Review
Video
Audio
Articles
February 24, 2025
In person at: National Research Council (Central Library) – Piazzale Aldo Moro, 7 – 00185 Rome, Italy / Online via the Microsoft Teams Platform
On Monday, February 24, 2025, from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM, the co-design event for the European project KEEPCARING will be held online on the Teams platform and in person at the “G. Marconi” Library of the CNR headquarters.
As part of the KEEPCARING project, the co-design event aims to involve hospital managers, doctors, nurses, and students (with experience in operating rooms) in exchanging opinions, ideas, and suggestions for the design of services and features for the online Change Management Platform. This management platform is designed to influence organizational models and support healthcare decision-makers in addressing stress and burnout among healthcare workers.
You can participate in the event by registering at the following link: https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/runner/KEEPCARING_evento_co-design .
On February 25, 2025, from 2:00 PM to 5:30 PM, the training session “Promoting gender equality in blue economy companies and organizations” will be held at the Sala Misiti of CNR-IRPPS, organized by the European project WINBLUE.
The training aims to raise awareness and enhance the sharing of knowledge and best practices on gender equality in the blue economy, in order to strengthen the capacity to address challenges and overcome obstacles that prevent individuals from accessing professional development opportunities in a balanced manner regardless of gender. Interactive sessions will be held during the event.
The training is intended for individuals working in businesses, NGOs, research institutions, universities, and students over 18 years of age who work in or are interested in the Blue Economy sector.
Participants in the training will receive a certificate.
It will be possible to participate in the workshop both in person and remotely.
Registration is required to participate: https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/runner/WINBLUE-TRAINING
The article Exploring the nexus of gender and energy transitions: A systematic literature review recently published in Energy Research & Social Science analyzes the link between gender issues and energy transitions, highlighting the need for more inclusive and targeted strategies.
The study, conducted for CNR-IRPPS by Marco Cellini, Cloe Mirenda, Lucio Pisacane, Serena Tagliacozzo, together with Sabine Loos and Clemens Striebing (Fraunhofer IAO), was developed within the European project gEneSys Transforming Gendered Interrelations of Power and Inequalities in Transition Pathways to Sustainable Energy Systems.
The research, based on a systematic literature review (SLR) of 152 scientific publications, identifies seven key dimensions linking gender to energy transitions and offers a structured overview of existing knowledge while identifying research gaps, providing essential insights for future studies.
Marco Cellini discusses the article.
On the topics analyzed in the article, the gEneSys project promotes the Autumn School Gender and Intersectional Inequalities in Energy Transition.
CNR Press Release:
An analysis by the MUSA research group at CNR-IRPPS shows a sharp increase in the number of adolescents who no longer meet their friends outside of school: the figures have nearly doubled since the COVID-19 pandemic. The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, demonstrates that the increase in social isolation in Italy constitutes a serious problem, already chronic and correlated with the interaction of relational and psychological factors
A study conducted by the multidisciplinary research group “Social Change, Evaluation and Methods” (MUSA) of the Institute for Research on Population and Social Policies of the National Research Council in Rome (CNR-IRPPS) investigated, through a socio-psychological research approach, the etiology of social withdrawal, identifying the triggering factors of such behavior among adolescents.
The research, published in the journal Scientific Reports of the Nature group, was based on data from two cross-sectional surveys conducted by the group in 2019 and 2022 on students from public upper secondary schools using the CAPI (Computer Assisted Personal Interview) technique and on nationally representative samples consisting of 3,273 and 4,288 adolescents aged 14 to 19 years, respectively. Through advanced statistical modeling techniques, three profiles of adolescents were identified: “social butterflies,” “friend-centric” and “lone wolves“: within this last profile, a subgroup was identified consisting of adolescents who no longer meet their friends outside of school, whose number has nearly doubled since the pandemic, rising from 5.6% in 2019 to 9.7% in 2022. These are the socially withdrawn.
“Previous studies by our research group had already clarified the causes of some negative effects of the change in social interactions accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which exacerbated the transposition of human relationships into the virtual sphere,” explains Antonio Tintori, among the authors of the work together with Loredana Cerbara and Giulia Ciancimino of the MUSA research group at CNR-IRPPS. “It was seen in particular that hyperconnection, i.e., overexposure to social media, plays a primary role in this corrosive process of adolescent interaction and identity and subsequently of individual psychological well-being. Hyperconnection is primarily responsible for both self-isolation and the explosion of youth suicidal ideation. The study shows that not only have young people who limit themselves to school attendance alone in their lives drastically increased from 2019 to 2022, but also in the adolescent world the habit of spending free time face-to-face with friends has significantly decreased: “lone wolves” have even tripled in 3 years, rising from 15% to 39.4%.”
Although slightly more prevalent among girls, the phenomenon affects both sexes and shows no substantial regional differences, nor differences related to the type of school attended or the family’s socio-cultural and economic background, as previously assumed. This clearly indicates that the problem is becoming global and endemic.
What do these young people have in common? Poor quality of social relationships (with parents, particularly with the mother), low relational trust (toward family members and teachers), victimization from cyberbullying and bullying, hyperconnection to social media, low participation in extracurricular sports activities, and dissatisfaction with one’s body. “These factors, further fueled by the pervasive influence of social pressures to conform to unattainable standards, including aesthetic ones, erode self-esteem, fostering a sense of inadequacy in social interactions with peers,” adds Tintori. “We have also found that those already in a state of social withdrawal show more moderate use of social media: this opens the hypothesis that, as the time of physical isolation increases, one gradually disconnects from virtual interactions as well, i.e., one moves toward total renunciation of sociality.”
The phenomenon, comparable to that of hikikomori in Japan, could generate a genuine social emergency: “Our study, in addition to providing useful results for understanding the nature of the problem, highlights the urgency of educational and training interventions directed at parents and teachers, as well as support for young people, namely specific support for adolescents in the most critical conditions,” concludes the researcher.
The MUSA research group at CNR-IRPPS, among the first to investigate the phenomenon of social withdrawal, is now continuing its activities by launching a large-scale longitudinal survey aimed at answering still-open questions and further clarifying the factors in the process leading to self-isolation. The survey, called “Interactional Changes and Well-being,” will involve thousands of adolescent students from schools over five years, allowing detailed analysis of young people’s behavioral development in interaction modalities and other important aspects related to socio-psychological well-being.
The study benefited from the collaboration of Gianni Corsetti from ISTAT.
See the full article Cerbara, L., Ciancimino, G., Corsetti, G. et al. Self-isolation of adolescents after Covid-19 pandemic between social withdrawal and Hikikomori risk in Italy. Sci Rep 15, 1995 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-84187-5
Unfortunately, the seminar scheduled for January 23, 2025 has been canceled. We will announce the new date as soon as it is available.
Thursday, January 23, 2025 – h. 12.30
Asia Room – CNR-IRPPS, via Palestro 32, Rome
Teams live stream link (Passcode: K64LJ7ri)
