This article aims to present the development and test the psychometric properties of the Perceived Occupational Stress (POS) scale, a new brief instrument aimed at rating a worker’s perception of feeling stressed at work. Six studies are conducted on an overall sample of 1,805 Italian workers, to examine both the construct and concurrent validity of the POS scale. The results demonstrate the high internal consistency (α = .82) and test-retest reliability ( r = .86) of the POS scale, as well as its structural validity and concurrent validity with the Maslach Burnout Inventory ( r = .68 with Emotional Exhaustion) and the Effort-Reward Imbalance Questionnaire ( r = .62 with Imbalance and r = .51 with Overcommitment). Moreover, the POS scale is determined to uniquely contribute toward predicting stress-related health complaints, over and above indicators of workplace stressors, as measured by the Health and Safety Executive Management Standards Indicator Tool ( R²_change = .06). Overall, the present findings indicate that the POS scale is a valid and reliable instrument for self-reporting occupational stress levels, and it could be used together with existing risk assessment measures of stress, to obtain a comprehensive evaluation of work-related stress.

Background Cobalt asthma has previously been described in cobalt production workers, diamond polishers and glassware manufacturers. Aims To describe a case series of occupational asthma (OA) due to cobalt, identified at the Birmingham Heartlands Occupational Lung Disease Unit, West Midlands, UK. Methods Cases of cobalt asthma from a West Midlands’ manufacturer of automotive engine valves, diagnosed between 1996 and 2005, were identified from the SHIELD database of OA. Case note data on demographics, employment status, asthma symptoms and diagnostic tests, including spirometry, peak expiratory flow (PEF) measurements, skin prick testing (SPT) and specific inhalational challenge (SIC) tests to cobalt chloride, were gathered, and descriptive statistics used to illustrate the data. Results The natural history of presentations has been described in detail, as well as a case study of one of the affected workers. Fourteen metalworkers (86% male; mean age 44.9 years) were diagnosed with cobalt asthma between 1996 and 2005. Workers were principally stellite grinders, stellite welders or machine setter-operators. All workers had positive Occupational Asthma SYStem analyses of serial PEF measurements, and sensitization to cobalt chloride was demonstrated in nine workers, by SPT or SIC. Conclusions We have described a series of 14 workers with cobalt asthma from the automotive manufacturing industry, with objective evidence for sensitization. Health care workers should remain vigilant for cobalt asthma in the automotive manufacturing industry.

Introduction: Measuring and understanding perceived occupational stress is crucial for understanding workers’ experiences of stress in the workplace and its potential implications on mental health outcomes and job performance. However, there is a scarcity of brief measures containing relevant items focused solely on occupational stress, suitable for integration with risk assessment tools for work-related stress. This study aimed to validate the Perceived Occupational Stress (POS) scale in Turkish and examined its measurement invariance across Turkish and Italian samples. Methods: The participants included 350 Turkish teachers (55.7% male) and 160 Italian workers (60.6% female). Results: The results showed a single-factor structure explaining 69.61% of the total variance for the POS. The internal consistency was found to be high in both samples. The results also indicated that the factor structure of the POS was equivalent across the two groups, supporting measurement invariance. Conclusion: Overall, the POS demonstrated solid measurement properties, including validated factor structure, internal reliability, and measurement invariance.

Do we look at persons currently or previously affected by COVID-19 the same way as we do with healthy ones? In this eye-tracking study, we investigated how participants (N= 54) looked at faces of individuals presented as “COVID-19 Free”, “Sick with COVID-19”, or “Recovered from COVID-19”. Results showed that participants tend to look at the eyes of COVID-19-free faces longer than at those of both COVID-19-related faces. Crucially, we also found an increase of visual attention for the mouth of the COVID-19-related faces, possibly due to the threatening characterisation of such area as a transmission vehicle for SARS-CoV-2. Thus, by detailing how people dynamically changed the way of looking at faces as a function of the perceived risk of contagion, we provide the first evidence in the literature about the impact of the pandemic on the most basic level of social interaction.

The process to define the 2023–2027 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is underway. The implementation model governing the process requires each EU Member State to design a National Strategic Plan to deliver operational actions exploiting the synergies under the two pillars of the policy. Each Plan must be built from an evidence-based needs assessment that undergoes rigorous prioritisation and planning to create comprehensive, integrated, and achievable interventions. In Italy, the success of this planning process requires all interested stakeholders to generate options for the regional authorities who plan, manage, and legislate agricultural activities. This research proposes a decision-making technique, based on the cumulative voting approach, that can be used effectively when multiple persons from different backgrounds and perspectives are engaged in problem-solving and needs prioritisation. The results indicate that the model can be applied both theoretically and practically to prioritise Strategic Plan needs that involve national and regional authorities. Validation of the model allows it to be used in the next consultative processes and for expansion to socioeconomic stakeholders.

Physicians expect a treatment to be more effective when its clinical outcomes are described as relative rather than as absolute risk reductions. We examined whether effects of presentation method (relative vs. absolute risk reduction) remain when physicians are provided the baseline risk information, a vital piece of statistical information omitted in previous studies. Using a between-subjects design, ninety five physicians were presented the risk reduction associated with a fictitious treatment for hypertension either as an absolute risk reduction or as a relative risk reduction, with or without including baseline risk information. Physicians reported that the treatment would be more effective and that they would be more willing to prescribe it when its risk reduction was presented to them in relative rather than in absolute terms. The relative risk reduction was perceived as more effective than absolute risk reduction even when the baseline risk information was explicitly reported. We recommend that information about absolute risk reduction be made available to physicians in the reporting of clinical outcomes. Moreover, health professionals should be cognizant of the potential biasing effects of risk information presented in relative risk terms.