In the last few years, service-learning (SL) has proven to be an effective educational methodology for the acquirement of knowledge and the personal and professional development of university students. However, there is a lack of specific research about the impact that SL has on psychoeducational variables. Therefore, the objective of this article is to study carefully the relationship between SL and civic attitudes, critical thinking, group work skills, empathy and self-concept of university students. A systematic review of 50 experimental studies about the implementation of the methodology published in the last five years and obtained from the Medline, Scopus, Web of Science and PsycInfo databases was carried out. The results show that SL provides students with a context which helps the development of their self-efficacy and self-esteem while learning to reflect and solve problems more effectively. Furthermore, by connecting with realities different from their owns, their empathy and their social conscience increase, becoming responsible citizens. Future studies should analyze the long-term results.

To determine whether or not digital inequalities exist, the frequency, duration, satisfaction, importance, and perceived competence of eighteen groups of digital tools during the COVID-19 pandemic confinement were examined. An online survey was administered to 2882 Latin American university students (49% female; M = 21.3 years). The following items are checked: (1) increased digital inequalities during the pandemic; (2) adequate reliability and validity of the Digital Technology Survey (DTS) instrument; (3) patterns of digital inequalities to the detriment of men, lower strata and unemployed people; and (4) evidence that the importance of digital activities as a causal factor on satisfaction with such digital activities as an outcome is mediated by the purpose of use and communication recipients, but not by strata or employment status, nor moderated by gender. The results are discussed in the light of previous studies, the limitations of the study and future perspectives.

This research describes and analyses the use made by young Spanish people of Tuenti, Facebook, Twitter and Myspace, exploring several variables: level of functional knowledge; frequency of use; place of use; reason for use; purpose and main activity; recipients of communication; degree of difficulty, satisfaction and preference; and intentions regarding future use. We designed and administered an online questionnaire to 757 students enrolled in secondary education (7th–11th levels and Vocational Education and Training) at seven educational centres. The results show that young Spanish people know about and use social networks on a daily basis. Tuenti was the one used with most frequency, followed by Facebook and Twitter. Myspace was the least known and used. Female subjects had a greater functional knowledge of these networks and reported a higher regular use of them. Participants used the social networks in their homes and preferred Tuenti because it is easy to use, allows them to communicate with friends and classmates and provides them with acceptable satisfaction as regards their need for prestige, acceptance and approval through the creation and maintenance of groups of friends and the publication of their achievements and self-realisations. The implications of the results obtained for psychological and social development are discussed.