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How Are You? A Sociological Case Report of the COVID-19 Pandemic from Professionals in Italy

Marchesini, Nicolo' LU orcid ; Avveduto, Sveva and Rubbia, Giuliana (2023) In Medical Research Archives 11(2).
Abstract
COVID-19 has turned our lives upside down. The first lockdown occurred in Italy in the spring of 2020, drastically disrupting people’s daily schedules, work schedules, socialisation, and relationships with co-workers, family and friends. To overcome physical isolation, collect impressions and keep a record of the period, the “How are you?” online questionnaire has been designed as a potential conversation among friends during home confinement for all but essential reasons. What impact this situation had on people? The study investigates some of the social and relational consequences the first lockdown in Italy had on a group of professionals in terms of similarities and differences regarding changes and limitations on their work and daily... (More)
COVID-19 has turned our lives upside down. The first lockdown occurred in Italy in the spring of 2020, drastically disrupting people’s daily schedules, work schedules, socialisation, and relationships with co-workers, family and friends. To overcome physical isolation, collect impressions and keep a record of the period, the “How are you?” online questionnaire has been designed as a potential conversation among friends during home confinement for all but essential reasons. What impact this situation had on people? The study investigates some of the social and relational consequences the first lockdown in Italy had on a group of professionals in terms of similarities and differences regarding changes and limitations on their work and daily routines, primarily focusing on the emotions felt at that time. Text mining techniques have been applied to almost one hundred replies, as well as an unsupervised method of emotion analysis; the latter is used for the entire sample and a subgroup consisting only of female scientists. Our findings show that during the Spring 2020 lockdown, a moment of physical and relational confinement was bear, causing bewilderment due to several factors: in terms of work-life balance, the overlap between public and private space, and the established daily routine to return, while regarding the relational sphere, the lack of physical contacts and interactions - such as support for dependent elderly - that technology has only partly been able to fill. Two primary emotions emerge from the entire sample: acceptance of the virus containment measures imposed and restlessness about the present and future. The group of female scientists appears more optimistic. The experienced situation of deprivation of individual freedoms such as movement and social contact, however, has brought along a new awareness of the frailties of our society, refocusing attention on the importance of scientific research, ecological transition, and, more generally, a reflection on our development model. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; and
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
COVID-19, Gender, Text mining, emotion analysis
in
Medical Research Archives
volume
11
issue
2
publisher
European Society of Medicine
ISSN
2375-1916
DOI
10.18103/mra.v11i2.3455
language
English
LU publication?
no
id
97a6dbaa-5e4a-4fa3-9071-27ec5ce88c96
alternative location
https://esmed.org/MRA/mra/article/view/3455/99193546676
date added to LUP
2023-03-23 01:05:24
date last changed
2023-04-25 11:40:14
@article{97a6dbaa-5e4a-4fa3-9071-27ec5ce88c96,
  abstract     = {{COVID-19 has turned our lives upside down. The first lockdown occurred in Italy in the spring of 2020, drastically disrupting people’s daily schedules, work schedules, socialisation, and relationships with co-workers, family and friends. To overcome physical isolation, collect impressions and keep a record of the period, the “How are you?” online questionnaire has been designed as a potential conversation among friends during home confinement for all but essential reasons. What impact this situation had on people? The study investigates some of the social and relational consequences the first lockdown in Italy had on a group of professionals in terms of similarities and differences regarding changes and limitations on their work and daily routines, primarily focusing on the emotions felt at that time. Text mining techniques have been applied to almost one hundred replies, as well as an unsupervised method of emotion analysis; the latter is used for the entire sample and a subgroup consisting only of female scientists. Our findings show that during the Spring 2020 lockdown, a moment of physical and relational confinement was bear, causing bewilderment due to several factors: in terms of work-life balance, the overlap between public and private space, and the established daily routine to return, while regarding the relational sphere, the lack of physical contacts and interactions - such as support for dependent elderly - that technology has only partly been able to fill. Two primary emotions emerge from the entire sample: acceptance of the virus containment measures imposed and restlessness about the present and future. The group of female scientists appears more optimistic. The experienced situation of deprivation of individual freedoms such as movement and social contact, however, has brought along a new awareness of the frailties of our society, refocusing attention on the importance of scientific research, ecological transition, and, more generally, a reflection on our development model.}},
  author       = {{Marchesini, Nicolo' and Avveduto, Sveva and Rubbia, Giuliana}},
  issn         = {{2375-1916}},
  keywords     = {{COVID-19; Gender; Text mining; emotion analysis}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{02}},
  number       = {{2}},
  publisher    = {{European Society of Medicine}},
  series       = {{Medical Research Archives}},
  title        = {{How Are You? A Sociological Case Report of the COVID-19 Pandemic from Professionals in Italy}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.18103/mra.v11i2.3455}},
  doi          = {{10.18103/mra.v11i2.3455}},
  volume       = {{11}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}