Cyberchondria refers to the excessive and repeated searching for medical information on the Internet and may be considered as health-related problematic Internet use. Previous findings indicated that cyberchondria is positively associated with health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms. Also, research suggests that excessive or problematic Internet use as well as health worries and compulsive behaviors are present among individuals with low self-esteem. This study sought to examine: (1) the association between self-esteem and cyberchondria, and (2) the mediating role of health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms in the relationship between self-esteem and cyberchondria. Participants (N = 207) from a community sample completed self-report measures assessing global self-esteem, health anxiety, obsessive–compulsive symptoms, and cyberchondria. We found that self-esteem directly predicted cyberchondria and that health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms parallelly mediated the relationship between self-esteem and cyberchondria. These findings suggest that low self-esteem, health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms can be considered vulnerability factors for cyberchondria. In addition, the reverse mediation model indicated that cyberchondria potentially predicts self-esteem both directly and through health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms. The bidirectional relationship among the analyzed variables are discussed in the context of potential psychological predictors and consequences of cyberchondria and possible mechanisms explaining cyberchondria. The current study provides further insight into the conceptualization of cyberchondria and the feasibility of specific treatment directions.

The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ 5X Short) is the most frequently used leadership measure in scholarship and organizational practice. However, so far it has not been validated in the Polish context. Therefore, the present study aimed to validate and shorten the MLQ (5X Short) in the Polish organizational setting. A total sample of 1,065 employees (572 women and 493 men) from different organizations took part in two sessions of an online study. Respondents were between 18 and 70 years old (M = 40.1; SD = 12.9) with an average job tenure of 17.00 years (SD = 12.1). In subsample 1 (n = 539), using exploratory factor analysis, a three-factor structure of the MLQ full form (MLQ-FF) was established, comprising transformational-supportive, inspirational goal-oriented, and passive-avoidant leadership. Based on qualitative (i.e., content analysis) and quantitative criteria (psychometric parameters), we constructed an 18-item MLQ short form (MLQ-SF). Both forms were supported by the confirmatory factor analysis in subsample 2 (n = 526). The MLQ-FF and MLQ-SF factors displayed acceptable to high levels of item-related parameters (e.g., intra-class, inter-item, and item-total correlations), as well as scale-related reliability (e.g., internal consistency, temporal stability). Both forms indicated high convergent and predictive validity examined by correlations with authentic leadership and employee's work outcomes (i.e., work satisfaction, work effectiveness, work engagement, and organizational commitment) (subsample 3; n = 691). Our study provided the full and the short form of the MLQ as reliable and valid instruments, potentially suitable to measure leadership styles in academic research and organizational practice.

In the world of university research, although the figure of project manager is not formally foreseen, the principal researcher (PR) is, at many times, the last responsible the project results, schedule, and cost. The study aimed to investigate, in the light of the literature and through a cross-cultural study conducted in Italy and Poland, the relationship between soft skills (empowering leadership style, self-efficacy beliefs, and collective efficacy) of the principal researcher (PR) and the perceived success of research projects and satisfaction with the project, taking into account cross-cultural differences. A total of 67 PRs of complex projects in public universities (28 in Italy and 39 in Poland) participated in the study, completing a self-report questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive and correlational analyses. The results showed a significantly higher mean value for team management self-efficacy in a Polish sample and a higher satisfaction with projects in Italian sample. All the soft skills included in the study were related to project success and satisfaction with the project. The results could be used to identify possible ways of intervention to establish a more mature project culture in public research organizations.

This article refers to the classic conception of determinants of leadership styles and presents the significance of individual characteristics in leadership process. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of strategic thinking in prediction of leadership styles. The results from 296 organizational leaders showed that thinking–oriented strategies, expressed by convergent processes in the strategic thinking directly predicted task–oriented leadership styles. Behavior-oriented strategies, expressed by divergent processes directly determined people–oriented leadership styles. This research indicates the vital role of cognitive, motivational and behavioral processes in leadership, especially in effective task realization and cooperation with followers. Presented results shed new light on what can be considered as typical behaviour of organizational leaders in the context of strategic thinking determination for human resources management and work effectiveness in the organization. They indicate that processes of mental operationalization of action are particularly important during implementation processes in organization

People tend to think positively about their future selves. However, it remains unclear to what extent this tendency depends on the positivity of their current self-appraisal. To study this problem, we employed the assumptions of construal level theory, the concept of self-enhancement, and the assumptions of temporal self-appraisal theory, and we examined the role of global self-esteem in the relationship between temporal distance and future self-appraisals measured in absolute (Study 1), comparative temporal (Study 2), or comparative social (Study 3) ways. In all three studies, when assessed in terms of specific dimensions, future self-appraisals increased with temporal distance only in people with low self-esteem, but when assessed in terms of general dimensions, self-appraisals were higher in the distant compared to the near future irrespective of self-esteem level.