The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) in social sciences research introduces both transformative potential and critical ethical dilemmas. This study examines the role of researchers as either ethical gatekeepers or pioneers of AI-driven change. Through a bibliometric analysis of 464 records from the Web of Science Core Collection, we identify key themes in ethical AI discourse using VOSviewer Version 1.6.20. The findings highlight dominant ethical concerns, including governance, bias, transparency, and fairness, emphasizing the need for interdisciplinary collaborations and responsible AI frameworks. While AI offers efficiency and scalability in research, unresolved issues related to algorithmic bias, governance, and public trust persist. The overlay visualization underscores emerging trends such as generative AI, policy-driven governance, and ethical accountability frameworks. This study calls for a shift from passive oversight to proactive ethical stewardship in AI-driven social science research.

Sustainable consumption refers to the choice, purchase, use, and disposal of goods so as to enable all people to meet their present and future objective needs. However, panic caused by the gradual onset of the pandemic had a considerable impact on the behavior of consumption and purchase of medication, and the question remains whether sustainable consumption still matters during a crisis or not. The present study aims to analyze whether the pandemic has influenced the behavior of medication use among residents of Brasov County amid panic caused by the virus and to determine the primary sources of information on methods of the prevention and treatment of health conditions. The study focusses on the differences between the two target groups, young people, and adults, considering three socio-demographic factors, such as age, gender, and background. The present research uses two methods of data collection: an interview with 5 doctors and a questionnaire with 543 respondents. This research draws attention to the fact that the behaviors of purchasing and consuming medication during the COVID-19 pandemic has changed due to the spreading of the new virus and the state of emergency, as well as with medication use becoming less sustainable. The results showed that adults were more engaged in the panic buying of medication compared to young people during the pandemic; however, in normal times, young people use more medication. Our study shows that females tend to consume more medicines than males. Moreover, they are more susceptible for seeking media guidance and following advice from the digital realm, because they avoid going to the doctor, especially during the COVID-19 period. Depending on the environment of residence, it was found that people in rural areas generally tend to consume more medication than those in urban areas. However, during the pandemic, the drug use of this category of population has decreased because they do not tend to self-medicate and avoid visiting the doctor because of the fear of becoming contaminated. The results of the research could help to establish measures in order to prevent the panic buying of self-medication and pharmaceuticals, both during pandemics and in normal times, because such behaviors can have negative effects on both health and the environment.

The social and vocational integration of vulnerable groups is an important aspect of social sustainability. Former users of the residential child protection system represent such a group. The purpose of our research was to investigate the social and vocational integration of individuals raised in the child protection system in Romania. Their experiences during and after their time in residential care are analyzed. The research sample was composed of 23 interviewees (18 male and 5 female) with an average age of thirty-five at the time of the interview (SD = 7.49). Our research method was a qualitative one, based on a semi-structured interview. The results paint a generally bleak image of life in such institutions, both before the fall of communism in Romania in December 1989 and subsequently. In addition, the respondents’ transition from institutional life to independent living was full of challenges. Nevertheless, most of the respondents have demonstrated a remarkable level of resilience, based on factors such as education, self-esteem, work, a life partner and the ability to acquire new skills. As a general conclusion, our study has shown that a sustainable social development plan should include social policies which strive for the de-institutionalization of the child protection system by preventing the separation of children from their biological families or, where necessary, by finding family-type solutions for children in difficulty. If institutional childcare is to continue, it must be accompanied by consistent efforts to prepare these children for their transition to independent living.

Academic functioning in university students emerges from the interplay of motivational, self-regulatory, emotional, and contextual processes. The present study examined the network structure linking academic motivation, self-regulated learning, academic engagement, academic burnout, generalized anxiety, self-esteem, and students’ ratings of instruction. Participants were 530 university students from Western Romania (Mage = 28.86, SD = 9.75; 87.5% women). Data were collected through an online cross-sectional survey using validated self-report instruments. A Gaussian Graphical Model was estimated using the EBICglasso procedure to examine the unique associations among the study variables and their relative structural importance within the network. The results indicated a moderately dense psychological network, with academic burnout emerging as the most structurally central node. Intrinsic motivation toward achievement, identified regulation, and performance control were positioned within the adaptive core of the network, whereas burnout, anxiety, amotivation, and low self-esteem clustered within the maladaptive region. Academic engagement occupied an intermediary position linking motivational and self-regulatory processes. Overall, the findings support a systems-oriented interpretation of academic functioning, suggesting that burnout represents a key convergence point in students’ psychological functioning, while self-determined motivation and self-regulated learning may serve as protective processes. These results highlight the value of network analysis for identifying psychologically meaningful intervention targets in higher education.