Michela Lenzi
Biographic Data
| ID | 3926827 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Michela Lenzi |
| GIVEN NAMES | Michela |
| FAMILY NAME | Lenzi |
| SIGNATURE | LENZI M |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Padua |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 19 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 52 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 19 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2011 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
This is why they are called “social” media! Nonlinear associations between time spent on social media and psychosocial well-being in a representative Italian sample
Navigating the complexity: Challenges and insights from professionals working with vulnerable families
This study emphasizes the importance of professionals’ view on vulnerable families • The article provides insights through an ecological and preventive approach. • Findings show professionals face challenges with parents, isolation, and cooperation. • The study stresses adopting a preventive and collaborative approach to help families. The increasing risk of poverty and social exclusion in Italy poses challenges to the support of vulnerable famil…
Associations between relative deprivation and problematic gaming in adolescence: Evidence from an Italian representative sample
BACKGROUND: Problematic gaming is a known risk factor for adolescent well-being. Yet, socioeconomic factors that might contribute to problematic gaming in adolescence have not been fully explored. This study examined the association between relative deprivation, defined as an individual's financial gap relative to their classmates, and problematic gaming in a representative sample of Italian adolescents. METHODS: We analysed data on family materi…
Problem gaming and adolescents’ health and well-being: Evidence from a large nationally representative sample in Italy
Playing video games is a common leisure activity for adolescents, but a minority can develop maladaptive gaming patterns and experience impairments in various health domains. Most research has been conducted within the dichotomy of “non-problematic gaming” and “problematic gaming” with convenience and unrepresentative samples, necessitating further investigation to provide more robust and generalizable evidence. In this study, we examined the imp…
Yes, I will do it! Factors promoting the intention to volunteer after Covid ‐19 pandemic in Italy
This cross‐sectional study assessed the extent to which the intention to volunteer after the COVID‐19 pandemic is associated with resilience, post‐traumatic growth, and community service self‐efficacy in a representative Italian sample ( N = 295; M age = 44.77; SD = 14.79; range = 18–83 years; 53.22% men). The model tested through a path analysis revealed a positive association between community service self‐efficacy and intention to continue vol…
School socioeconomic status and psychological complaints among adolescents in 44 countries: The mediating role of schoolwork pressure and classmate support and the moderating role of family SES and co…
Psychometric properties of the measure of achieved capabilities in homeless services
Findings demonstrate that the MACHS is a valid and reliable measure that may be used to assess the extent to which homeless services support their clients to develop capabilities needed for growth-related recovery. Implications for practice and future research directions are discussed
The global development of community psychology as reflected in the American Journal of Community Psychology
This commentary presents a virtual special issue on the global growth of community psychology (CP), particularly, but not exclusively, as reflected in the American Journal of Community Psychology (AJCP) . CP exists in at least 50 countries all over the world, in many of those for over 25 years. Yet, aside from several early Israeli articles, AJCP rarely published work from or about countries outside the US and Canada until the early 2000s, when t…
Goals and Principles of Providers Working with People Experiencing Homelessness: A Comparison Between Housing First and Traditional Staircase Services in Eight European Countries
The implementation and adaptation of the Housing First (HF) model represented profound changes the structure and delivery, goals, and principles of homeless services. These features of homeless services directly influence providers, their work performance and the clients' outcomes. The present research, conducted in eight European countries, investigated how social providers working in HF or TS (Traditional Staircase) describe and conceptualize t…
Can Mentoring Promote Self-esteem and School Connectedness? An Evaluation of the Mentor-UP Project
Research in the United States has shown that youth mentoring is a promising strategy for increasing self-esteem and school connectedness in at-risk youth. There has been little confirmation of those findings internationally. The current study evaluates the impact of mentoring by trained university students on children’s self-esteem and school connectedness compared to schoolmates not involved in the program. Mentor-UP is a school- and community-b…
Changing the method of working with homeless people: A photovoice project in Italy
In Italy, many organizations are experimenting with the Housing First (HF) model to promote a change in how they work with homeless people. This change creates some difficulties, especially in promoting freedom of choice in people involved in the HF programs. This study explored the definition of “home” in homeless people’s points of view. The study participants were 5 homeless men involved in a HF program called “The Road Home” implemented in th…
Relative deprivation and disordered gambling in youths
BACKGROUND: Previous research has found that area-level income inequality and individual-level relative deprivation both contribute to disordered gambling in adults. However, the socioeconomic factors that contribute to disordered gambling in youths and protective factors in their social environment have not been fully explored. This study examined the association between relative deprivation and youth disordered gambling and the potential modera…
Sociopolitical Control for Immigrants: The Role of Receiving Local Contexts
This study examines the individual and contextual factors associated with sociopolitical control expressed by immigrants in southern Spain. We used hierarchical linear modeling to evaluate the relations between individual (community participation, social connectedness, and perceived cultural competence of receiving community services) and municipality characteristics (city community participation, city social connectedness, and city community ser…
Social Capital and Fear of Crime in Adolescence: A Multilevel Study
Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the relationships between social capital (at the individual, the neighborhood, and the regional levels) and adolescents' fear of crime, while controlling for the main individual (sociodemographics, television viewing, and bullying victimization), neighborhood (neighborhood size and aggregated victimization), and regional (crime rate and level of urbanization) variables. Data were analyzed using a t…
Factors Associated With Civic Engagement in Adolescence: The Effects of Neighborhood, School, Family, and Peer Contexts
Research on youth civic engagement has emphasized the importance of growing up in a civic context. We examined the relative influence of neighborhood characteristics (neighborhood opportunities and intergenerational closure), civic education at school, friends’ civic engagement, and parents’ civic engagement on civic attitudes and civic behaviors among youths. Participants were 403 11‐ to 15‐year‐old adolescents randomly selected from the city re…
Adolescent gang involvement: The role of individual, family, peer, and school factors in a multilevel perspective
Youth gang involvement is a serious public health challenge as adolescents involved in gangs are more likely than others to engage in violence and aggression. To better understand gang involvement, we examined the role of protective (empathy and parental support) and risk (peer deviance and lack of safety at school) factors, as well as their interactions, in predicting adolescent gang affiliation. The study involved a sample of 26,232 students (5…
Italian Validation of the Sociopolitical Control Scale for Youth (Spcs‐y)
The aim of the study is to validate the two‐dimensional structure of the Sociopolitical Control Scale for Youth (SPCS‐Y) in a sample of Italian adolescents and to investigate associations of this interpersonal component of psychological empowerment with different measures of psychosocial adjustment. The questionnaires were filled out by a sample of 1,376 (57.6% females; mean age = 17.24, standard deviation = .99) 11th‐ to 13th‐grade students. The…
How Neighborhood Structural and Institutional Features Can Shape Neighborhood Social Connectedness: A Multilevel Study of Adolescent Perceptions
According to the norms and collective efficacy model, the levels of social connectedness within a local community are a function of neighborhood structural characteristics, such as socioeconomic status and ethnic composition. The current work aims to determine whether neighborhood structural and institutional features (neighborhood wealth, percentage of immigrants, population density, opportunities for activities and meeting places) have an impac…
Violent behavior and unfairness in school: Multilevel analysis of Italian schools
This study examines the role of school unfairness in predicting violent behavior among Italian early adolescents. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the relations between individual (demographics, psychosocial and relational characteristics, and perception of procedural and relational school unfairness), and class characteristics (mean school unfairness and socioeconomic status) and students' violent behavior. Data were analyzed usi…
How Neighborhood Structural and Institutional Features Can Shape Neighborhood Social Connectedness: A Multilevel Study of Adolescent Perceptions
According to the norms and collective efficacy model, the levels of social connectedness within a local community are a function of neighborhood structural characteristics, such as socioeconomic status and ethnic composition. The current work aims to determine whether neighborhood structural and institutional features (neighborhood wealth, percentage of immigrants, population density, opportunities for activities and meeting places) have an impac…
Italian Validation of the Sociopolitical Control Scale for Youth (Spcs‐y)
The aim of the study is to validate the two‐dimensional structure of the Sociopolitical Control Scale for Youth (SPCS‐Y) in a sample of Italian adolescents and to investigate associations of this interpersonal component of psychological empowerment with different measures of psychosocial adjustment. The questionnaires were filled out by a sample of 1,376 (57.6% females; mean age = 17.24, standard deviation = .99) 11th‐ to 13th‐grade students. The…
Sociopolitical Control for Immigrants: The Role of Receiving Local Contexts
This study examines the individual and contextual factors associated with sociopolitical control expressed by immigrants in southern Spain. We used hierarchical linear modeling to evaluate the relations between individual (community participation, social connectedness, and perceived cultural competence of receiving community services) and municipality characteristics (city community participation, city social connectedness, and city community ser…
Factors Associated With Civic Engagement in Adolescence: The Effects of Neighborhood, School, Family, and Peer Contexts
Research on youth civic engagement has emphasized the importance of growing up in a civic context. We examined the relative influence of neighborhood characteristics (neighborhood opportunities and intergenerational closure), civic education at school, friends’ civic engagement, and parents’ civic engagement on civic attitudes and civic behaviors among youths. Participants were 403 11‐ to 15‐year‐old adolescents randomly selected from the city re…
Adolescent gang involvement: The role of individual, family, peer, and school factors in a multilevel perspective
Youth gang involvement is a serious public health challenge as adolescents involved in gangs are more likely than others to engage in violence and aggression. To better understand gang involvement, we examined the role of protective (empathy and parental support) and risk (peer deviance and lack of safety at school) factors, as well as their interactions, in predicting adolescent gang affiliation. The study involved a sample of 26,232 students (5…
Social Capital and Fear of Crime in Adolescence: A Multilevel Study
Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the relationships between social capital (at the individual, the neighborhood, and the regional levels) and adolescents' fear of crime, while controlling for the main individual (sociodemographics, television viewing, and bullying victimization), neighborhood (neighborhood size and aggregated victimization), and regional (crime rate and level of urbanization) variables. Data were analyzed using a t…
The global development of community psychology as reflected in the American Journal of Community Psychology
This commentary presents a virtual special issue on the global growth of community psychology (CP), particularly, but not exclusively, as reflected in the American Journal of Community Psychology (AJCP) . CP exists in at least 50 countries all over the world, in many of those for over 25 years. Yet, aside from several early Israeli articles, AJCP rarely published work from or about countries outside the US and Canada until the early 2000s, when t…
Violent behavior and unfairness in school: Multilevel analysis of Italian schools
This study examines the role of school unfairness in predicting violent behavior among Italian early adolescents. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the relations between individual (demographics, psychosocial and relational characteristics, and perception of procedural and relational school unfairness), and class characteristics (mean school unfairness and socioeconomic status) and students' violent behavior. Data were analyzed usi…
School socioeconomic status and psychological complaints among adolescents in 44 countries: The mediating role of schoolwork pressure and classmate support and the moderating role of family SES and co…
Relative deprivation and disordered gambling in youths
BACKGROUND: Previous research has found that area-level income inequality and individual-level relative deprivation both contribute to disordered gambling in adults. However, the socioeconomic factors that contribute to disordered gambling in youths and protective factors in their social environment have not been fully explored. This study examined the association between relative deprivation and youth disordered gambling and the potential modera…
Violent behavior and unfairness in school: Multilevel analysis of Italian schools
This study examines the role of school unfairness in predicting violent behavior among Italian early adolescents. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the relations between individual (demographics, psychosocial and relational characteristics, and perception of procedural and relational school unfairness), and class characteristics (mean school unfairness and socioeconomic status) and students' violent behavior. Data were analyzed usi…
How Neighborhood Structural and Institutional Features Can Shape Neighborhood Social Connectedness: A Multilevel Study of Adolescent Perceptions
According to the norms and collective efficacy model, the levels of social connectedness within a local community are a function of neighborhood structural characteristics, such as socioeconomic status and ethnic composition. The current work aims to determine whether neighborhood structural and institutional features (neighborhood wealth, percentage of immigrants, population density, opportunities for activities and meeting places) have an impac…
Italian Validation of the Sociopolitical Control Scale for Youth (Spcs‐y)
The aim of the study is to validate the two‐dimensional structure of the Sociopolitical Control Scale for Youth (SPCS‐Y) in a sample of Italian adolescents and to investigate associations of this interpersonal component of psychological empowerment with different measures of psychosocial adjustment. The questionnaires were filled out by a sample of 1,376 (57.6% females; mean age = 17.24, standard deviation = .99) 11th‐ to 13th‐grade students. The…
Adolescent gang involvement: The role of individual, family, peer, and school factors in a multilevel perspective
Youth gang involvement is a serious public health challenge as adolescents involved in gangs are more likely than others to engage in violence and aggression. To better understand gang involvement, we examined the role of protective (empathy and parental support) and risk (peer deviance and lack of safety at school) factors, as well as their interactions, in predicting adolescent gang affiliation. The study involved a sample of 26,232 students (5…
Social Capital and Fear of Crime in Adolescence: A Multilevel Study
Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the relationships between social capital (at the individual, the neighborhood, and the regional levels) and adolescents' fear of crime, while controlling for the main individual (sociodemographics, television viewing, and bullying victimization), neighborhood (neighborhood size and aggregated victimization), and regional (crime rate and level of urbanization) variables. Data were analyzed using a t…
Factors Associated With Civic Engagement in Adolescence: The Effects of Neighborhood, School, Family, and Peer Contexts
Research on youth civic engagement has emphasized the importance of growing up in a civic context. We examined the relative influence of neighborhood characteristics (neighborhood opportunities and intergenerational closure), civic education at school, friends’ civic engagement, and parents’ civic engagement on civic attitudes and civic behaviors among youths. Participants were 403 11‐ to 15‐year‐old adolescents randomly selected from the city re…
Changing the method of working with homeless people: A photovoice project in Italy
In Italy, many organizations are experimenting with the Housing First (HF) model to promote a change in how they work with homeless people. This change creates some difficulties, especially in promoting freedom of choice in people involved in the HF programs. This study explored the definition of “home” in homeless people’s points of view. The study participants were 5 homeless men involved in a HF program called “The Road Home” implemented in th…
Relative deprivation and disordered gambling in youths
BACKGROUND: Previous research has found that area-level income inequality and individual-level relative deprivation both contribute to disordered gambling in adults. However, the socioeconomic factors that contribute to disordered gambling in youths and protective factors in their social environment have not been fully explored. This study examined the association between relative deprivation and youth disordered gambling and the potential modera…
Sociopolitical Control for Immigrants: The Role of Receiving Local Contexts
This study examines the individual and contextual factors associated with sociopolitical control expressed by immigrants in southern Spain. We used hierarchical linear modeling to evaluate the relations between individual (community participation, social connectedness, and perceived cultural competence of receiving community services) and municipality characteristics (city community participation, city social connectedness, and city community ser…
Goals and Principles of Providers Working with People Experiencing Homelessness: A Comparison Between Housing First and Traditional Staircase Services in Eight European Countries
The implementation and adaptation of the Housing First (HF) model represented profound changes the structure and delivery, goals, and principles of homeless services. These features of homeless services directly influence providers, their work performance and the clients' outcomes. The present research, conducted in eight European countries, investigated how social providers working in HF or TS (Traditional Staircase) describe and conceptualize t…
Can Mentoring Promote Self-esteem and School Connectedness? An Evaluation of the Mentor-UP Project
Research in the United States has shown that youth mentoring is a promising strategy for increasing self-esteem and school connectedness in at-risk youth. There has been little confirmation of those findings internationally. The current study evaluates the impact of mentoring by trained university students on children’s self-esteem and school connectedness compared to schoolmates not involved in the program. Mentor-UP is a school- and community-b…
Psychometric properties of the measure of achieved capabilities in homeless services
Findings demonstrate that the MACHS is a valid and reliable measure that may be used to assess the extent to which homeless services support their clients to develop capabilities needed for growth-related recovery. Implications for practice and future research directions are discussed
The global development of community psychology as reflected in the American Journal of Community Psychology
This commentary presents a virtual special issue on the global growth of community psychology (CP), particularly, but not exclusively, as reflected in the American Journal of Community Psychology (AJCP) . CP exists in at least 50 countries all over the world, in many of those for over 25 years. Yet, aside from several early Israeli articles, AJCP rarely published work from or about countries outside the US and Canada until the early 2000s, when t…
Yes, I will do it! Factors promoting the intention to volunteer after Covid ‐19 pandemic in Italy
This cross‐sectional study assessed the extent to which the intention to volunteer after the COVID‐19 pandemic is associated with resilience, post‐traumatic growth, and community service self‐efficacy in a representative Italian sample ( N = 295; M age = 44.77; SD = 14.79; range = 18–83 years; 53.22% men). The model tested through a path analysis revealed a positive association between community service self‐efficacy and intention to continue vol…
School socioeconomic status and psychological complaints among adolescents in 44 countries: The mediating role of schoolwork pressure and classmate support and the moderating role of family SES and co…
Problem gaming and adolescents’ health and well-being: Evidence from a large nationally representative sample in Italy
Playing video games is a common leisure activity for adolescents, but a minority can develop maladaptive gaming patterns and experience impairments in various health domains. Most research has been conducted within the dichotomy of “non-problematic gaming” and “problematic gaming” with convenience and unrepresentative samples, necessitating further investigation to provide more robust and generalizable evidence. In this study, we examined the imp…
This is why they are called “social” media! Nonlinear associations between time spent on social media and psychosocial well-being in a representative Italian sample
Navigating the complexity: Challenges and insights from professionals working with vulnerable families
This study emphasizes the importance of professionals’ view on vulnerable families • The article provides insights through an ecological and preventive approach. • Findings show professionals face challenges with parents, isolation, and cooperation. • The study stresses adopting a preventive and collaborative approach to help families. The increasing risk of poverty and social exclusion in Italy poses challenges to the support of vulnerable famil…
Associations between relative deprivation and problematic gaming in adolescence: Evidence from an Italian representative sample
BACKGROUND: Problematic gaming is a known risk factor for adolescent well-being. Yet, socioeconomic factors that might contribute to problematic gaming in adolescence have not been fully explored. This study examined the association between relative deprivation, defined as an individual's financial gap relative to their classmates, and problematic gaming in a representative sample of Italian adolescents. METHODS: We analysed data on family materi…
Psychology (16 works) · Social Psychology (12 works) · Medicine (9 works) · Developmental psychology (8 works) · Clinical Psychology (7 works) · Political science (7 works) · Community Health and Development (6 works) · Sociology (6 works) · Homelessness and Social Issues (5 works) · Multilevel model (5 works)