PRODUCCIÓN CIENTÍFICA Y TRANSFERENCIA

Territorial Capital and Farmers’ Intention Towards Organic Farming: Evidence from Rural Areas in Paraguay

Fri, 29 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Territorial Capital and Farmers’ Intention Towards Organic Farming: Evidence from Rural Areas in Paraguay di Santo, Naomi; Fernández-Portillo, Luis A.; Vázquez-De Francisco, María José; Estepa-Mohedano, Lorenzo; Sisto, Roberta This study investigates the determinants of farmers’ intention to convert to organic farming, focusing on the role of perceived territorial capital in rural Paraguay. Despite increasing demand for sustainable agricultural systems, the adoption of organic farming remains uneven, particularly in developing countries. Existing literature has mainly examined economic, socio-demographic, and psychological factors, while the role of territorial context has received less attention. The analysis relies on primary data collected through a structured survey of 167 conventional farmers across four Paraguayan departments. A logistic regression model is used to evaluate the effect of different dimensions of territorial capital— environmental, institutional, economic, and infrastructural—together with socio-economic and organisational characteristics, on farmers’ intention to convert within the next five years. The results indicate that perceived environmental capital significantly increases the probability of conversion intention (AME = 0.097, p < 0.05), while social capital, proxied by cooperative membership, raises it by 17.5 percentage points (p < 0.05). In contrast, perceived institutional capital shows a negative association (AME = -0.059, p < 0.10), and market orientation toward local markets reduces the probability of conversion (AME = -0.314, p < 0.05). Economic and infrastructural factors are not statistically significant. Overall, the study contributes by incorporating a territorial perspective into the analysis of adoption intentions and underlines the importance of strengthening environmental resources and social networks to support agro-ecological transitions.

Revalidating Body Image Dynamics in the Body Investment Scale Using Network Analysis: A Clinical and Behavioural Perspective

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Revalidating Body Image Dynamics in the Body Investment Scale Using Network Analysis: A Clinical and Behavioural Perspective Díaz Milanés, Diego; Garcia-Megias, Ana; Clouté-Fernández, Ana; Navas León, Sergio Introduction: Body image is a core psychological construct with major implications for mental health, self-regulation, and health-related behaviours. Negative body investment is associated with eating disorders, depression, psychological distress, non-suicidal self-injury, and suicide risk, underscoring the need for clinically informative assessment. Although the Body Investment Scale (BIS) is widely used, further work on item-level dynamics and gender-related patterns may benefit from alternative analytic approaches. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study included 872 university students (73.7% female; mean age = 20.62 years, SD = 2.15). Item-level gender differences were examined using descriptive statistics and independent-sample t-tests. Gaussian Graphical Models (GGMs) with LASSO regularisation were estimated for the full sample and separately by gender. Network density, edge weights, centrality indices, and node predictability were evaluated; network invariance and global strength were tested. A Bayesian Network (BN) was also estimated to explore potential directional dependencies among items. Results: BIS items showed acceptable distributional properties. Several items differed significantly by gender, with small-to-moderate effects. The network was dense (86.7% of possible edges), indicating strong inter-item connectivity. Network structure was invariant across genders (p = 0.573), but global strength was higher in females (S = 2.732) than in males (S = 2.629; p = 0.043), suggesting greater overall interconnectedness of body image attitudes among women. Across models, Item 3 (“I hate my body”) showed the highest predictability (GGM R² up to 0.742; BN R² = 0.727), whereas Item 6 (“I like my appearance in spite of its imperfections”) showed the lowest predictability. Discussion: These findings support a network conceptualisation of body investment in which certain BIS items appear particularly influential. Clinically, highly predictable and strongly connected items may be useful targets for assessment, monitoring, and intervention planning, while gender differences in overall connectivity may inform tailoring of prevention and psychoeducation.

Psychometric Evaluation of a Spanish Telepressure Measure in Primary School Students

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Psychometric Evaluation of a Spanish Telepressure Measure in Primary School Students Martínez - Calvo, Jesús; Díaz - Milanés, Diego; Guerra, Jose Manuel Introduction: Telepressure—the perceived urge to respond quickly to digital messages—may undermine students’ attention and well-being, yet brief validated tools are limited in school settings. This empirical study evaluates the psychometric properties of a Spanish adaptation of the 6-item Workplace Telepressure Measure (WTM-6) for primary education. Materials and Methods: Participants were 439 Spanish primary students (5th grade n=189; 6th grade n=250; 53.99% females) who completed the WTM-6 on a 1–5 Likert scale. Factorability was assessed using the Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) index and Bartlett’s test. Dimensionality was examined with multiple factor-retention procedures and then tested with a one-factor confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using an ordinal estimator. Model fit was evaluated with χ², CFI, TLI, RMSEA (90% CI), and SRMR. Internal consistency was estimated with ordinal alpha, split-half reliability, and omega total. Group differences by gender and grade were examined using independent-sample t-tests with Cohen’s d. Results and Discussion: The data were suitable for factor analysis (KMO=0.800; Bartlett χ²(15)=728.45, p<.001). Retention criteria converged on a single latent factor. The one-factor CFA showed good fit: χ²(9)=25.48, CFI=0.985, TLI=0.974, RMSEA=0.065 (90% CI [0.036, 0.095]), and SRMR=0.053. Reliability was satisfactory in the total sample (ordinal α =0.797; ω=0.854). Telepressure did not differ by gender (total score p=0.540), but 5th-grade students reported slightly higher telepressure than 6th-grade students (M=2.595 vs 2.377; p=0.006; d=0.264). These findings support the use of the adapted WTM-6 as a brief, reliable measure of telepressure in primary educational contexts.

Mechanism of lipid transfer by bridge-like protein VPS13A and the scramblase XK

Fri, 12 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Mechanism of lipid transfer by bridge-like protein VPS13A and the scramblase XK Hu, Bodan; Álvarez, Daniel; Rocha-Roa, Cristian; De Camilli, Pietro; Vanni, Stefano; Reinisch, Karin M. In eukaryotes, bridge-like lipid-transfer proteins (BLTPs) are central in mediating vesicle-independent lipid transfer between organelles. BLTPs span the cytosolic space between organelles at contact sites, featuring hydrophobic channels for lipids to travel between membranes. How BLTPs cooperate with partner proteins to orchestrate lipid delivery remains a mystery. Here, we used cryo-electron microscopy to visualize a complex comprising the prototypical BLTP VPS13A and the plasma membrane-localized scramblase XK at near-atomic resolution. VPS13A interacts with XK via its pleckstrin homology domain, priming VPS13A’s bridge-like lipid-transfer domain to deliver lipids directly to the cytosolic leaflet of the acceptor membrane. In molecular dynamics simulations, this arrangement allows for robust lipid transfer. Newly delivered lipids can then be equilibrated between leaflets of the membrane bilayer by the scramblase, allowing for membrane growth. Mechanistic insights regarding lipid delivery by VPS13A are directly applicable to all VPS13 proteins and, more broadly, to all BLTP family members.