The CNR-Irpps Social Tranformations, Evaluation and Methods (MUSA) research activity in March 2020 has established the Observatory on the Ongoing Social Changes - Covid19 (OSC - COVID19), in which two large national surveys were carried out with the aim of at exploring and analysing the psychosocial effects of the physical distancing due to the COVID19 emergency: the sudden deterioration of social interaction on the one hand and the intense cohabitation at home on the other. According to a study published by the University of Greenwich, the Observatory's first survey, which has been carried out between 22 March and 2 April 2020, was the one with the largest number of respondents in the world among non-clinical studies reaching 140,656 interviews. Subsequently, within the OSC-COVID19 Observatory, other surveys have been carried out as both temporal and territorial comparisons. Among them, one was conducted in Turkey during the lockdown, counting more than 10,000 cases. More specifically, the research covered the analysis of the psychosocial effects of the spread of coronavirus on interpersonal, individual and economic spheres. The study has been carried out using semi-structured electronic questionnaires conveyed through institutional and social channels. The non-probability samples have been weighted a posteriori on the basis of the structural characteristics of the population (in terms of gender, education and territorial areas), in order to avoid risks of under-representation of specific population groups. The main dimensions of the study concerned housing and working conditions, leisure activities, virtual behaviours and communication, digital divide and hyperconnection, interactions and deviance within the domestic environment, systemic trust, stereotypes and gender roles, primary emotions and coping strategies. The psychosocial research orientation, typical of the MUSA group, has allowed to simultaneously analyse several variables, in order to provide a more exhaustive reading of the complex social reality taking into account the influence of both sociological and psychological variables on attitudes and behaviours. The Observatory's results have been published in international scientific journals and monographs, being widely disseminated in local and national media.
Useful link to the group, the Observatory and the research reports:
https://www.irpps.cnr.it/mutamenti-sociali-valutazione-e-metodi-musa/
https://www.irpps.cnr.it/musa/msa-covid19/
https://www.cnr.it/it/news/allegato/1924
https://www.cnr.it/it/news/allegato/1925
Link to the publications:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33378055/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33155248/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32633412/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33612922/
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