Japanese literature has been known in Poland at least since the end of the 19th century, when first translations were made of Japanese prose and poetry (although via English or other languages). I consider the first translation made directly from Japanese into Polish language a short story by Kikuchi Kan, entitled Tusz ('Ink'), published in April of 1939, in a monthly magazine "Echoes from Far East." In the same magazine we can find also many examples of stories and poetry written not by Japanese, but by Polish authors, fascinated with Japan and its culture. Works by the same authors: Maria Juszkiewiczowa, Aleksander Janowski, Antoni Kora, Leon Rygier, Remigjusz Kwiatkowski and others were published also in other newspapers and magazines, and as separate novel books. While some short mentions about the earliest translations may be found in books on Japanese literature and contacts between Poland and Japan, novels, stories and poems written originally by Polish authors inspired by Japan are now all but forgotten. Hardly any of them were published again after World War II and they are not to be found in regular libraries. In the present paper I concentrate on the forgotten jewels of Polish prose (and to some extent poetry and drama) based on Japanese themes, published before World War II.

Subjective Well-Being is related to the Big-Five and to Individualistic and Collectivistic beliefs of Polish adolescents. In the present study, we examined whether Individualism and Collectivism beliefs mediate between the Big-Five and Subjective Well-being among adolescents, young and middle-aged adults. Adolescents (N = 174, 36% men, aged 14–18), young (N = 254, 45% men, aged 19–24) and middle-aged adults (N = 252, 54% men, aged 40–55) completed the NEO-FFI, the Ind-Col20, and measures of Subjective Well-being. The three groups differed on all dimensions. Adolescents reported the highest Neuroticism, the lowest Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, the highest Individualism and Collectivism beliefs and lowest SWB. Among adolescents, SEM analyses indicated that Subjective Well-being was negatively related to Neuroticism and Agreeableness, positively to Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Horizontal Individualism, Horizontal and Vertical Collectivism. Among young and middle-aged adults Subjective Well-being was negatively related to Neuroticism and Horizontal Collectivism, positively to Openness, Conscientiousness, Horizontal and Vertical Individualism. Beliefs partially mediated the effects of traits. Relationships were different for cognitive and affective Subjective Well-being indices.

The present study focused on relationships between personality traits, self-efficacy, self-esteem and basic trust, and well-being in context of entrepreneurial activity. Participants were 301 unemployed people, 157 of whom had received a grant from an employment agency to start their own business. Participants completed measures of personality traits, self-efficacy, self-esteem, basic trust, satisfaction with life, positive and negative affect. To verify if beliefs about the self and about the world mediated relationships between personality traits and well-being we conducted a multiple-sample SEM. The study results confirm that the beliefs mediate relationships between personality traits and well-being. They also show that different types of beliefs serve a different function, depending on an individual’s circumstances. Among grant acceptors, self-efficacy did not impact well-being, while self-esteem and basic trust had similar functions in both groups.

The effect of emulsifier volume on emulsion system stability of plant origin being the basis of diet supplements for animals in winter season was analyzed. For this purpose, measurements of the backscattered light intensity as the function of the measuring cell height were conducted with a Turbiscan LAB optical analyzer. System stability was analyzed on the basis of Turbiscan Stability Index values. A Helos laser analyzer and a Nikon Eclipse E400 POL optical microscope were used to investigate drop size distribution and analyze microscopic pictures. It was shown that emulsion with 10% (w/w) of the emulsifier was the most stable one.

The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between Big-Five personality traits, perceived self-efficacy (GSES) and dimensions of occupational burnout in accordance with Christina Maslach’s three-factor burnout model (emotional burnout, depersonalization, perceived lack of own accomplishments). Data collected among 271 teachers (82% female) aged 20–68 confirmed findings from previous research that four personality traits (Neuroticism, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness) are correlated with burnout and that they are significant predictors for all dimensions of burnout. In addition, it was shown that GSES plays a moderating role as a buffer that protects people with high levels of neuroticism from a sense of lack of own accomplishments. It was also found that GSES plays a mediating role for the relationship between Extraversion, Conscientiousness and Neuroticism and perceived lack of own accomplishments and that it is a suppressor for the relationship of neuroticism with emotional exhaustion. The results are discussed in the context of personality theories and their possible applications.