Background: Restrictive measures implemented by governments around the world to control the coronavirus have an impact on communication, especially the communication of the elderly. Objective: The aim for the article is to determine the attitudes of the elderly towards the ways of communication during the COVID 19 pandemic, and to present the challenges faced by the elderly when using digital ways of communication. The goal is also to point out the importance of providing adequate social support to the elderly. Methods: The sample consisted of 71 respondents from Bosnia and Herzegovina, aged over 60 years, divided into two groups. The questionnaire was used to gather information from respondents on their demographic characteristics as well as to examine participants’ attitudes and confidence regarding the manner and risk of communication associated with COVID-19. Results and Discussion: The results of this research showed that the elderly are actively using digital technologies, but that they are largely dissatisfied with their skills in using digital technologies. Most of the information during the COVID 19 pandemic is given to elderly people via television and telephone (video) conversations with family members and friends. 57.7% of the elderly stated that they greatly lacked direct communication, and it turned out that people living in elderly homes were in a slightly more favorable position. As many as 4/5 of the respondents reported feelings of anxiety, fear, loneliness, and depression. Conclusion: The older part of the population (those over 60 years old), especially in developing countries, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, is facing the challenge of “digitization of communication“. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the elderly are “calling“ for special support and the provision of training and access to technological resources in order to reduce negative psychological consequences and go one step further in creating an “elder-friendly” society.

In this paper, the authors analyze the advantages and limitations of freelancing in four countries of Western Balkan. This work is based on the research with a total sample of 1031 respondents; 408 respondents from Serbia, 201 from Montenegro, 221 from North Macedonia, and 201 from Bosnia and Herzegovina. For the needs of the research, a special questionnaire was constructed and conducted by an electronic survey. The first goal of the research is to describe the functioning of freelancers in four countries, and the second is to describe the similarities and differences between countries of Western Balkan. In general, freelancers in all four countries have positive attitudes towards freelancing, although there are differences between them. Freelancers are especially satisfied with their income, and in Bosnia and Herzegovina with flexible working hours. No statistically significant differences were found among freelancers from four countries of Western Balkan in the structure of jobs they have worked in the last two years, nor in the assessment of the positive effects of new technologies on new forms of employment. They do not differ either in understanding that the work in the "Gig Economy" had less negative than positive effects on their private lives and in the fact that there are no differences in the assessment of the positive effects of freelance on the quality of life. They are no differences in terms of the proposed measures to improve the position of workers in the "Gig Economy". Unfortunately, there are also no differences in basic social rights (lack of health, disability, and pension insurance). The most significant differences have been noted between freelancers from Montenegro and freelancers from the other three countries. Freelancers from Montenegro see less positive contributions working in the "Gig Economy" than others, and they significantly more often believe that the "Gig Economy" can’t reduce unemployment and prevent brain drain abroad. The authors explain the negative attitudes of freelancers from Montenegro towards their work in the "Gig Economy" with the lower prevalence of freelancers, poorer job structure, and lower income with an unfavorable socioeconomic status.

In this study, the authors analyzed the problematic use of pornographic websites and Internet sex addiction in representative samples of respondents from different age groups including 2948 respondents from Serbia and 1486 from Montenegro. A standard questionnaire of 33 questions with answers in binary form was used. In addition to epidemiological indicators, the study also included nine family risk factors and six risk factors associated with early psychosocial developmental disorders. Finally, the social profiles of Internet sex addicts in Serbia and Montenegro were described. The results of the research showed that Internet sex addicts are mostly young adults aged 20 to 30. The overall dependency rate was estimated within average limits. In general, Internet sex addiction is among the lowest of all behavioral addictions. The authors see the reason for this in the greatest potency of this addiction for the development of addictive patterns of behavior, but also in the great predictiveness of this addiction together with the gambling addiction for the emergence and development of other behavioral addictions. All examined risk factors (except for shyness and reticence) do "separate" Internet sex addicts from those who do not have the listed risk factors at zero level of significance. However, an examination of the prediction of Internet sex addiction using binary logistic regression showed that aggressive and criminal behaviors in early youth, followed by disorders in educational and emotional relations between parents and children, have the highest predictive values for Internet sex addiction. Social profiles are unclear and unstructured, and the authors explain this by the fact that biological, not sociological, and sociocultural factors play a dominant role in developing addictive patterns of behavior.

The review outlines the importance of understanding speech and language difficulties that occur among the first symptoms of frontotemporal dementia, as well as the role of speech therapists in the management of people with frontotemporal dementia. Frontotemporal dementia is one of the most common types of dementia in adults under the age of 65. The main variations of frontotemporal dementia are behavioral, progressive nonfluent aphasia, semantic dementia, and logopenic progressive aphasia. Speech and language difficulties are often among the first indicative signs of frontotemporal dementia, and their proper recognition and understanding play a significant role in the differential diagnosis. Speech and language therapists have to be involved both in the diagnosis of frontotemporal dementia and its treatment to provide the highest quality services to people with dementia and their carers.

Introduction: Population aging increases the number of people with dementia. Dementia is a set of symptoms that include memory difficulties, learning difficulties, speech and language difficulties, disorientation in time and space, difficulties in understanding and behavioral changes. Dementia is not part of natural aging and needs to be understood as such and have to be recognized at time to provide adequate support for people with dementia. Aim: To present the importance of communication: To present communication difficulties which are the result of dementia; To present adaptations in the way of communicating with people with dementia. Material and methods: The article has a descriptive character, and represents a review of the literature dealing with this topic. Results: Difficulties in area of language are a common symptom in people with dementia. Those communication difficulties are a consequence of nerve cell failure, and person with dementia should not be blamed of the symptoms that arise. People with dementia show lower results in the area of understanding and verbal expression, repetition, reading and writing. Syntax and phonology remain relatively intact in early stages, but semantic abilities are impaired. Conclusion: Communication for people with dementia and with people with dementia for all persons involved in care (including family members, medical staff and therapists, and members of the community) can be very challenging. It is often necessary to adapt the way of communication to avoid stress and negative feelings in a person with dementia. As the disease causing dementia progresses, communication problems are increasing as well. Many times caregivers and therapists are in situations where their communicative behavior (verbal, but also nonverbal) needs to show support, compassion, care, and desire to help.