Guendalina Graffigna

• PhD
• Professor (Associate) at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore

Innovative farming practices to mitigate environmental impacts are critical. Participatory approaches, which actively involve farmers in co-developing solutions, are vital for overcoming resistance and enabling successful, context-specific agricultural innovations. This scoping review maps participatory methodologies in agricultural innovation, ide...

The organic food market is rapidly expanding in both cultivated acreage and consumer demand, driven by ethical, environmental, and health considerations. However, food fraud schemes pose challenges that threaten product credibility. Omics technologies—advanced traceability methods employing genomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics— may offer a p...

The agricultural sector faces significant challenges in meeting rising food demands while addressing environmental sustainability and climate change. Adopting advanced technologies is crucial for transitioning to more sustainable farming practices. However, to ensure successful implementation of such technologies, consumers and other food supply ch...

Objective To examine patient engagement (PE) levels of atrial fibrillation (AF) patients with multimorbidity, to identify distinct personas based on sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, as well as engagement levels, and to compare PE in disease management with health-related quality of life, medication adherence, and perceptions of care q...

Plain English Summary Scientists are increasingly recognizing the value that people with lived experience of an illness bring to medical research, including their contributions to planning, managing, and authoring scientific publications. This study involved patients and researchers in a participatory process to highlight the benefits of patient pa...

This study elucidated the impact of perceived stigma on the well-being of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients and explored the mediating role of patient engagement. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using an online survey, recruiting participants through the Italian IBD patient organization. The survey assessed perceived stigm...

Background This paper describes a study protocol for co-producing and co-assessing a new sustainable and scalable service solution that enhances health and social integration by involving providers and volunteers delivering services for elderly people in the province of Cremona (Italy), where the elderly population will reach 27% in 2023. Methods...

Milk consumption is crucial for a balanced diet, yet recent trends indicate a decline, especially in Italy. A significant factor in this decline is the altered perception of milk quality among consumers, which has created a communication gap between them and other stakeholders. This study aimed to explore the discourse on social media and sentiment...

Background People with multimorbidity are increasingly engaged, enabled, and empowered to take responsibility for managing their health status. The purpose of the study was to systematically review and appraise the psychometric properties of tools measuring patient engagement in adults with multimorbidity and their applicability for use within enga...

Milk consumption is crucial for a balanced diet, yet recent trends indicate a decline, especially in Italy. A significant factor in this decline is the altered perception of milk quality among consumers, creating a communication gap between them and other stakeholders. This study aimed to explore the discourse on social media and sentiment towards...

Background This paper describes a study protocol for co-producing and co-assessing a new sustainable and scalable service solution that enhances health and social integration by involving providers and volunteers delivering services for elderly people in the province of Cremona (Italy), where the elderly population will reach 27% in 2023. Methods T...

Advancements in New Plant Breeding Techniques have emerged as promising tools for enhancing crop productivity, quality, and resilience in the face of global challenges, such as climate change and food security. However, the successful implementation of these techniques relies also on public acceptance of this innovation. Understanding what shapes p...

Nutrition has been acknowledged as crucial in IBD and is relevant to patients’ motives behind food choices, which are affected by health engagement (HE) and food involvement (FI). This study aimed to profile IBD patients according to their levels of health engagement and food involvement to identify patterns of different motives behind food choices...

Recent studies underlined the impact that chronic kidney disease (CKD) has on patients' well-being and the need for mental health support. However, literature suggests that psycho-logical support is not often requested by patients, and barriers and prejudices that impede them to access mental health care are not well-known. This study aims to analy...

In recent years, the problem gambling rate has increased in international and national contexts. Meanwhile, the attention devoted to responsible and safe gambling has risen in academic and institutional areas, aiming to define mitigation actions to prevent the problem gambling phenomenon. In such a scenario, literature has highlighted the need to d...

The role of the caregiver is essential in the management of older people’s care processes, provide unpaid care and assistance to aged family members and act as case managers. Despite this they are in a potentially dangerous situation for his or her own health. The article discusses the importance of involving stakeholders in social and health servi...

Vaccine hesitancy became a more and more important issue during the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the emergence of new variants, many international health agencies have already begun administering booster doses of the vaccine in response to these threats. Studies have emphasized the effectiveness of different types of incentive-based strategies to incr...

Little is known about the impact of "free-from" symbols on people's consumption choices - particularly for controversial ingredients such as palm oil. We investigated how "free-from" symbols influence consumers' perceptions of food products and whether the absence of an ingredient, whether real or fabricated, is seen as a sign of improved healthine...

Introduction: Although the patient experience of integrated care has been documented for several chronic conditions, little is known in the context of rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs). This study provides a first overview of the patient experience of integrated care according to the perspective of people living with RMDs in Italy. Me...

Our lives have drastically changed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Information and communications technologies (ICTs) have replaced other media as the primary means of work, communication, expression, and entertainment throughout this time. As society's reliance on technology increases throughout and possibly after the pandemic, it is critical to ful...

Introduction: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most widespread chronic diseases in the world and, by its nature, it affects several disciplines. Patients often appear unaware and lacking an adequate lifestyle and appropriate nutritional education to prevent its aggravation. Consequently, it appears essential to promote educational initia...

Food Involvement reflects the bond between consumer and food, and serves as a means of expression, identity and social recognition. Yet no existing scales are able to assess the complex psychological nature of Food Involvement. To fill this gap, this study developed and validated a Psychological Food Involvement Scale (PFIS). Data were collected by...

Consumers' demand for organic food has increased in the last years, together with a growing request for food authentication and safety. Omics technologies represent a viable analytical strategy to respond to such needs, strengthen food safety information transmission between consumers and industry, and differentiate between organic and conventional...

Introduction: Rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs) rank as some of the most prevalent chronic conditions globally. Integrated care is a promising approach for enhancing person-centred care, allowing patients to achieve the outcomes that are important for them. To evaluate the application and benefits of integrated care, patient experiences...

Purpose Hemodialysis has become a standard therapy for adults with end-stage renal diseases. Adults undergoing hemodialysis have to cope with unique psychological issues that make their care journey particularly fatiguing. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we aimed to summarize and evaluate the effects of psychosocial interventions on th...

Increasing consumers demand for foods with a lower environmental impact requires the introduction of effective traceability technologies ensuring the integrity of the information provided. Blockchain technology (BCT) has been the most used for this purpose. However, to effectively implement a BCT system, it is important to map the determinants that...

Introduction Already in its first implementation, the introduction of the Covid‐19 immunity certificate has generated some debate among the public. This debate might be a hindrance to the effective realization of this policy. This study aimed to systematically review published research evaluating public feeling of the Covid‐19 immunity certificate...

(1) Background: As biofortified fish meat is becoming increasingly available, the use of supplements within fish feed may impact consumers’ perceptions and their willingness to pay (WTP) for the product. This study focused on evaluating the sensory liking of, and WTP for, fish produced with fortified feed while understanding the role played by the...

A cross-sectional survey between 29 January 2022 and 3 February 2022 was conducted to understand the public rationale for accepting or rejecting the use of COVID-19 immunity certificates and to identify the psychosocial factors that mostly predict the positive/negative individuals’ perceptions of this measure. One thousand twenty-two Italian adults...

A key challenge for public institutions is to ensure adequate funding for health, especially in times of crisis, and motivating citizens’ prosocial financial behavior is critical to ensuring the efficiency of healthcare. This article investigates citizens’ willingness to support healthcare with data from two cross-sectional Italian studies conducte...

Nowadays, research that investigates the determinants affecting consumer acceptance of foods with or without palm oil is growing, while there is a lack of studies that summarize this evidence and that focus on a potential trade-off between these two options, namely, products containing sustainable palm oil. For this reason, a systematic review was...

Objectives To measure the association between patient activation and hospitalization or emergency department (ED) visits among adults with chronic diseases. Study design Systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods A systematic review of English articles was performed using the following databases: PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, PsycIN...

Background Evidence suggests that organizational models that provide care interventions including patient support programs may increase patient adherence to multiple sclerosis (MS) therapies by providing tailored symptom management, informational support, psychological and/or social support, lifestyle changes, emotional adjustment, health education...

This study focuses on the development of a reliable coding scheme (CP-CODER) for studying interaction dynamics during the co-production of a public service involving priority communities. CP-CODER addresses the need to involve priority populations in the development of public services, an approach that has been recognized as difficult because of th...

Objective To propose a possible taxonomy for diverse stakeholders outside the healthcare communication field and to promote meaningful patient engagement in healthcare settings. Moreover, to support them in making more coherent policy, strategy, and practice decisions to enhance patient participation in their healthcare systems. Discussion This pa...

Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) researchers and communication scholars have developed a broad range of theories and instruments to evaluate the concept of user engagement. However, so far, the proposed instruments are not able to fully capture the processual nature of engaging experiences with technological devices, while focusing instead on state...

The role of food in people's life has changed dramatically in recent years. In particular, it is becoming more symbolic and linked to subjective values. For this reason, recent scientific research has delved into the construct of Food Involvement. However, to the best of our knowledge, there are no empirical studies aimed at exploring this construc...

Traceability of food is considered as an important tool for ensuring food quality and safety, in turn increasing consumers’ trust. Verification of food authenticity is currently carried out by officials and producers, typically through the use of paper documents that may not ensure a proper level of integrity. Therefore, independent analytical meth...

Background: Integrated care is an approach to health care based on multidisciplinary working and the continuity and coordination of different levels of care (1). In an integrated care setting, health services are designed to go beyond fragmentation and isolation and delivered in response to chronic patient health needs. Integrated care has been pro...

In March 2021, the possible link between the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine and some cases of blood clots lead several governments to suspend the administration of said vaccine, or to adjust their administration strategies, regardless of the fact that both EMA and WHO claimed the benefits of the vaccine to far outweigh its risks. The lack of a coordina...

COVID-19 exerted a strong impact on the Italian healthcare systems, which in turn resulted in a reduction in the citizens’ trust towards healthcare authorities. Moreover, the focused attention on the typical COVID-19 symptoms (fever, cough) has also impacted the social representation of health priorities, potentially reducing the perceived importan...

Growing bodies of literature show that a controlled diet is important in controlling the symptoms of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD). This leads patients to avoid foods considered potentially harmful. However, food is not just a nutrient but entails a series of hedonistic, cultural and social values. Thus, there is the concern that having to reno...

During the last year, feelings of anxiety and depression were registered among the Italian population and affected food consumption. Among the research that explored people’s dietary inclinations during the current pandemic, no previous studies have explored psychological factors associated with the “free-from” dietary pattern. Our study is aimed a...

The consumption of lactose-free products and in particular lactose-free milk is increasing worldwide. Although many studies claim that this dietary trend is mainly determined by the number of lactose intolerant people that is growing, others state that most of them self-report an intolerance that has not been diagnosed by medical tests. However, ma...

About 5000 people in Italy suffer from hemophilia, the most common coagulation disorder. As for other chronic diseases, even in the case of hemophilia, the engagement of the patient is essential: the patients, in fact, must be empowered and helped to become strong partners of the care team and sensitized with respect to their rights and duties for...

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of citizens’ behaviors in the containment of the virus. Individuals might change their intention to adhere to public health prescriptions depending on various personal characteristics, including their own emotional status, which has been recognized to be a crucial psychological factor in orientin...

Background Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are remitting and relapsing diseases that mainly interest the gastrointestinal tract. IBD is associated with a condition of psycho-social discomfort that deeply compromises the quality of life and the competence of patient to be fully engaged in their self-management. As a consequence, effective care of...

Purpose The purpose of the present cross-sectional study is to investigate the role of perceived COVID-19-related organizational demands and threats in predicting emotional exhaustion, and the role of organizational support in reducing the negative influence of perceived COVID-19 work-related stressors on burnout. Moreover, the present study aims t...

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 emergency on patients with IBD's psychological distress, understanding the role of patient engagement as a mediator. Methods: An online questionnaire was created, measuring perceived risk susceptibility toward COVID-19, perceived stress, and patient engagement. The questionnaire was...

Background Italy was the first European country to implement a national lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Worldwide, this pandemic had a huge impact on the mental health of people in many countries causing similar reaction in terms of emotions and concerns at the population level. Our study investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic...

Assessing vaccine hesitancy and its determinants is pivotal to optimize vaccine acceptance in antic-oagulated patients, given that this population has been described to have a higher risk of severe COVID-19-related complications. This study assessed the moderator role of patients' health engagement on the relationship between health literacy and va...

The construct of involvement has been shown to affect brand loyalty, diffusion of innovations, responses to advertising, and finally, food purchase choices. Despite the recognized importance of this construct in the food market, there is no agreement about the best way to define and measure it. This systematic review provides an overview of current...

Gli Autori replicano ai contributi sull'articolo-bersaglio "Uno scenario transdisciplinare sulla salute: paradigma per la psicologia e gli psicologi?" sottolineando lo sviluppo di due linee tematiche di riflessione. Da un lato, si osserva un approfondimento delle ragioni a favore di un approccio transdi-sciplinare alla salute e a favore di un impeg...

Background Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) may be particularly vulnerable to the effects of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) on disease management and psychological status. This study explored psychological reactions to the Covid-19 emergency and IBD disease management in a sample of Italian patients. Methods An online questionnaire...

Ensuring multiple sclerosis (MS) patients’ adherence to therapy is often challenging, but it is crucial to their survival and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The aim of the present study was to outline connections between adherence, physical and mental HRQoL, levels of psychological readiness to engage in a treatment, levels of social suppo...

Background The chronic and progressive evolution of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD), with its prototypical fluctuating trend, creates a condition of psycho-social discomfort, impacting the quality of life in terms of personal, working, and interpersonal. Aims In this article, we want to identify the nature and extent of the research evidence on...

Background Family caregivers are key actors in the ageing society. They are mediators between practitioners and patients and usually provide also essential daily services for the elders. However, till now, few services have been deployed to help caregivers in their care tasks as in improving their mental health which can experience sever burden due...

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are remitting and relapsing diseases that mainly interest the gastrointestinal tract. This is associated with a condition of psycho-social discomfort that prevents the affected person from living normally and deeply compromises the quality of life in terms of personal, work, and interpersonal well-being. Management...

Si afferma in campo scientifico un nuovo approccio transdisciplinare alla salute (TDS) basato sul coinvolgimento partecipativo di più discipline e di più attori (di area scientifica e laica) nella costruzione di risposte alle domande sociali di salute. Descritto il fenomeno della TDS nelle sue caratteristiche principali (storiche, teoriche, me-todo...

Literature highlights the need of feasible interventions where psychological, emotional and behavioral support strategies are leveraged to engage bariatric surgery patients taking care for their health. This study explores severe obese patients' self-reported outcomes with a nurse-led intervention providing patient engagement support ("PHEinAction"...

The EU and its Member States have articulated a sustainability vision 'to live well within the limits of our planet' by 2050. In this context, consumers play a key role, being able to drive seafood production sustainability and responsibility according to their behaviour, also in relation to their attitudes towards health, nutrition and well-being....

Background Italy was the first European country to implement a national lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Worldwide, this pandemic had a huge impact on the mental health of people in many countries causing similar reaction in terms of emotions and concerns at the population level. Our study investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic...

Policy Points • Preventive measures such as the national lockdown in Italy have been effective in slowing the spread of COVID‐19. However, they also had psychological and economic impacts on people’s lives, which should not be neglected as they may reduce citizens’ trust and compliance with future health mandates. • Engaging citizens in their own...

Background Co-production has been widely recognised as a potential means to reduce the dissatisfaction of citizens, the inefficacy of service providers, and conflicts in relations between the former and the latter. However, the benefits of co-production has begun to be questioned: co-production has often been taken for granted, and its effects may...

In the Italian context, the diffusion of online fake news about food is becoming increasingly fast-paced and widespread, making it more difficult for the public to recognize reliable information. Moreover, this phenomenon is deteriorating the relation with public institutions and industries. The purpose of this article is to provide a more advanced...

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a transmissible illness that was recognized in December 2019 and World Health Organization (WHO) stated a pandemic on 11 March 2020. As no cure has been developed for COVID-19 disease yet, Italy has adopted restrictive measures to avoid the spread of the virus, causing different psychological reactions (e.g., stres...

Background Patients diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are required to deal with the unpredictability of this clinical condition, which is associated with poorer health-related quality of life (HRQoL) compared to other clinical conditions. Patient engagement is currently demonstrated to relate with chronic patients’ HRQoL, but few stud...

In the Italian context, the diffusion of online fake news about food is becoming increasingly fast-paced and widespread, making it more difficult for the public to recognize reliable information. Moreover, this phenomenon is deteriorating the relation with public institutions and industries. The purpose of this article is to provide a more advanced...

Background Family caregivers are key actors in the ageing society. They play a pivotal role in enabling the possibility of elders to age in place, so to live at home for as long as possible. They also are mediators between practitioners and patients and usually provide also essential daily services for the elders. However, till now, few services ha...

Flu vaccination for the general population, and specifically for vulnerable subgroups, brings the potential to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of mobility, mortality, and hospitalizations. In Italy, flu vaccination is recommended to all ≥6 months of age, even if it is only free of charge for specific categories. We investigated...

Objective: Communication in healthcare has influenced and been influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this position paper, we share observations based on the latest available evidence and experiential knowledge that have emerged during the pandemic, with a specific focus on policy and practice. Methods: This is a position paper that presents ob...

Background Gluten- and lactose-free products are registering a sudden rise in the market, particularly among tolerant people, and this leads to consumer confusion and nutritional inadequacies. The number of studies around this trend has steadily increased in the last 10 years, as scholars from different disciplines have tried to rationalize consume...

Background: The chronic and progressive evolution of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD), with its prototypical fluctuating trend, creates a condition of psycho-social discomfort, impacting the quality of life in terms of personal, working and interpersonal. Aims: In this article, we want to identify the nature and extent of the research evidence on...

The involvement of vulnerable actors in co-production activities is a debated topic in the current public service literature. While vulnerable actors should have the same opportunities to be involved as other actors, they may not have the needed competences, skills and attitudes to contribute to this process. This paper is part of a broader project...

The COVID-19 pandemic forced health authorities around the world to introduce public health measures to contain the risks of contagion. This greatly impacted on citizens’ quality of life, often raising concerns and reactance. There is an ongoing urgent need to promote and sustain behavioral changes and adherence to preventive measures. Based on the...

The COVID-19 pandemic is exerting a high pressure on healthcare systems all over the world. Italy, in particular, being one of the first Western countries to be struck by the contagion, has seen the number of recovered -and deceased- patients increase alarmingly, thus increasing the workload and the demands for healthcare professionals. This situat...

The actual effectiveness of the still-to-come vaccination against the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 might be challenged by vaccine hesitancy, a rather common and known phenomenon whose psychological predictors are, nevertheless, still largely debated. Our study aims at understanding how adult citizens' health engagement, perceived COVID-19 susceptibility...

Background and Aims In Italy, the spread of the novel coronavirus (SARS-Cov-2) required lifestyle changes that have affected food choices and people’s health condition. We explore people’s perception of the role of food consumption as a preventive measure and how it reconfigures consumption habits. Method and Results We conducted an online survey...

Aim: To systematically and critically summarize the state of the evidence about the Synergy Model and its utilization in nursing practice. Background: The Synergy Model emphasizes the importance of alignment between patient needs and nurse competencies in achieving adequate patient- and nurse-related outcomes. It is a relatively new patient-cent...

Background In January 2020, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) started to spread in Italy. The Italian government adopted urgent measures to slow its spread. Enforcing compliance with such measures is crucial in order to enhance their effectiveness. Engaging citizens in the COVID-19 preventive process is urgent today both in Italy and around t...

Background At the end of February 2020 a new case was diagnosed with COVID-19 in north Italy, suddenly followed by new cases. Italian health authorities decided to enforce restrictive measures. Northern areas of Italy were identified as “red areas” to slow down the epidemic and its impact on the healthcare system. From this perspective, the COVID-1...

Background ”Ageing-in-place” may improve elderly citizens' quality of life and the sustainability of welfare systems. In this process engaging family caregivers is crucial. Methods A community-based participatory research in the remote area of Vallecamonica was enacted. First, we surveyed unmet needs of family caregivers. Then, a scoping literatur...

Background and aims: PREMs are today a core asset to orient healthcare quality improvements. They are particularly relevant in clinical situations requiring frequent interactions between patients and the healthcare system, like inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Indeed, IBD chronic care requires continuous therapies, psychological interventions and...

Background: ManTra is a mixed-methods, co-production research project for developing an intervention (resource) for people with newly diagnosed secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (pwSPMS) in Italy and Germany. In previous project actions, six resources were outlined, meeting the needs prioritized by pwSPMS. Aims: This study aims to achieve mu...

Researchers have been working quickly and collaboratively for the development of vaccines against the COVID-19 virus. The effort of the scientific community in searching a vaccine for COVID-19 may be hampered by a diffused vaccine hesitancy. Two waves of data collection on representative samples of the Italian population (during the “first” and “se...

Objectives: During a pandemic, healthcare workers (HCWs) are essential to the health system response. Based on our knowledge, little information is available regarding the psychosocial impact on HCWs or interventions for supporting them during pandemics. Therefore, the study aimed to assess available literature on perceived stress and psychologica...