Digital detox: An effective solution in the smartphone era? A systematic literature review

Smartphone use, e.g., on social network sites or instant messaging, can impair well-being and is related to clinical phenomena, like depression. Digital detox interventions have been suggested as a solution to reduce negative impacts from smartphone use on outcomes like well-being or social relationships. Digital detox is defined as timeouts from using electronic devices (e.g., smartphones), either completely or for specific subsets of smartphone use. However, until now, it has been unclear whether digital detox interventions are effective at promoting a healthy way of life in the digital era. This systematic literature review aimed to answer the question of whether digital detox interventions are effective at improving outcomes like health and well-being, social relationships, self-control or performance. Systematic searches of seven databases were carried out according to PRISMA guidelines, and intervention studies were extracted that examined timeouts from smartphone use and/or smartphone-related use of social network sites and instant messaging. The review yielded k = 21 extracted studies (total N = 3,625 participants). The studies included interventions in the field, from which 12 were identified as randomized controlled trials. The results showed that the effects from digital detox interventions varied across studies on health and well-being, social relationships, self-control, or performance. For example, some studies found positive intervention effects, whereas others found no effect or even negative consequences for well-being. Reasons for these mixed findings are discussed. Research is needed to examine mechanisms of change to derive implications for the development of successful digital detox interventions

Shedding Light onto the City Blues Myth—The Potential of Stimulating and Activating Effects of Urban Public Spaces and the Role of City Relatedness

The present study aims to investigate whether a sense of relatedness to a city helps to broaden understanding of the restorative potential of urban public spaces. Findings based on a sample of German adults (n = 249) confirm that people experience relatedness to a city. The study’s 3 × 3 (built, mixed, natural environment) × (average, livability environment, bird’s-eye view) design revealed disordinal interactions for being away, fascination, preference, mental fatigue, and stimulating and activating effects associated with cities. This implies that humans’ place perceptions are more complex than previously assumed. Both city and nature relatedness were relevant covariates of these findings. Surprisingly, the construct ‘activating effects’, was found to be mostly perceived as more positive for mixed and built environments compared to natural environments. Thus, complementing restorative environments research by introducing a measure for city relatedness significantly enhances understanding of the potential of urban public spaces for promoting human health and well-being.Peer Reviewe

Digital detox: An effective solution in the smartphone era? A systematic literature review

Smartphone use, e.g., on social network sites or instant messaging, can impair well-being and is related to clinical phenomena, like depression. Digital detox interventions have been suggested as a solution to reduce negative impacts from smartphone use on outcomes like well-being or social relationships. Digital detox is defined as timeouts from using electronic devices (e.g., smartphones), either completely or for specific subsets of smartphone use. However, until now, it has been unclear whether digital detox interventions are effective at promoting a healthy way of life in the digital era. This systematic literature review aimed to answer the question of whether digital detox interventions are effective at improving outcomes like health and well-being, social relationships, self-control or performance. Systematic searches of seven databases were carried out according to PRISMA guidelines, and intervention studies were extracted that examined timeouts from smartphone use and/or smartphone-related use of social network sites and instant messaging. The review yielded k = 21 extracted studies (total N = 3,625 participants). The studies included interventions in the field, from which 12 were identified as randomized controlled trials. The results showed that the effects from digital detox interventions varied across studies on health and well-being, social relationships, self-control, or performance. For example, some studies found positive intervention effects, whereas others found no effect or even negative consequences for well-being. Reasons for these mixed findings are discussed. Research is needed to examine mechanisms of change to derive implications for the development of successful digital detox interventions

Changing mental models to promote pro-environmental ecosystem management : recreational fishermen and their fish stocking practices in Swiss running waters

Fisheries research has discovered that the habitat situation in Swiss running waters, a parasitic fish disease and fisheries management are most likely responsible for declining fish catches in Switzerland. Regarding fisheries management, recreational fishermen (hereafter called anglers) can be considered as main stakeholders in Switzerland, who actively participate in management activities. Fish stocking (or stocking) is among the most common and widespread management tools. It can be defined as the intentional release of large numbers of fish derived from hatcheries, rearing streams or ponds into target rivers. Main motives for stocking are mitigation for human-caused habitat perturbations, restoration and conservation of stocks and harvest enhancement. While stocking is very popular among Swiss anglers and there is indication that they might overestimate its power, it is critically discussed among ecologists and fisheries scientists because it has the potential to threaten fish conservation and the sustainability of indigenous fish stocks through increased competition, loss of genetic distinctiveness and the spread of diseases and/or parasites. The aim of the present thesis was to shed light upon the beliefs of Swiss anglers regarding stocking, with a focus on trout (Salmo trutta) as one of the most preferred fish species among Swiss anglers. Besides eliciting and analysing these mental models of Swiss anglers, this research project aimed at changing the anglers’ mental models about trout and stocking to promote pro-environmental fisheries management – where appropriate and indicated. The project this thesis bases on was designed as an interdisciplinary research project with three main stages and contributions from both fisheries science and psychology. In the first stage, the anglers’ mental models of stocking, trout and trout habitat requirements and impairments were elicited and analysed with a qualitative approach (N = 12). A Swiss-wide survey (N = 418) was conducted in the second stage, primarily to validate and enhance the findings from stage I, while the biological aspect of the project focused mainly on compiling expert knowledge (based on findings from literature) of stocking, trout and trout habitat requirements and impairments. In the third project stage, stocking success controls with six different fishing clubs were conducted. The stocking success controls and the findings from stage I and II were utilised to design an intervention project, which aimed at changing the fishing club members’ mental models of stocking, where indicated. The intervention project included participation in stocking success controls and detailed feedback on stocking success (through reports and a workshop). The intervention effect was measured by recurring surveys and, in the case of the workshop, flipchart protocols. Main results from the qualitative approach in stage I were the identification of an additive and a compensatory mental model of stocking and trout stocks. While the additive mental model basically stated that stocking should be conducted independently of the degree of natural reproduction, the compensatory mental model related the need for stocking to the degree of natural reproduction and claimed that the better the degree of natural reproduction, the less stocking would be needed. Regarding the second stage, these two types of mental models could be reproduced in a larger, Swiss-wide angler sample. It could be concluded that the additive mental model was widespread among the surveyed anglers; approximately 2/3 of them could be allocated to it. Additionally, the additive mental model was associated with a higher attitude towards stocking, a higher functionality for goal achieving regarding fisheries management, a lower pro-environmental orientation and a lower risk perception of stocking compared to the compensatory mental model. Main results of the third stage were that – according to the results from the stocking success controls – two fishing clubs could continue with stocking, another two should modify stocking and the remaining two should abandon stocking. The applied intervention project was not successful in changing the mental models from the additive type to the compensatory type, although tendencies of change could be observed in relevant psychological domains and four out of six fishing clubs partially or totally followed the project’s recommendations in their agreements on future stocking practice. Overall, it could be concluded that the surveyed anglers had very detailed mental models of trout, trout habitat requirements and impairments and of stocking, which covered the compiled expert knowledge in most aspects very well. Additionally, the mental models approach proved to be very promising in generating a deeper understanding of anglers and their beliefs about stocking and processes in the stream and river ecosystem. Even though no significant changes due to the applied interventions could be observed, the intervention study resulted in valuable insights regarding the role of functionality for mental models theory and for intervention planning. In der Fischereiforschung wurde entdeckt, dass die Habitatsituation in Schweizer Fliessgewässern, eine parasitäre Fischerkrankung und Fischereimanagement höchst wahrscheinlich verantwortlich für abnehmende Fischfänge sind. Bezogen auf das Fischereimanagement können Hobby-Fischer (oder Angler) in der Schweiz als Hauptakteure bezeichnet werden, da sie aktiv in die Bewirtschaftung der Gewässer eingebunden sind. Eine sehr verbreitete und übliche Bewirtschaftungsmassnahme ist der sogenannte Fischbesatz (oder kurz: Besatz). Darunter wird das intentionale, meist im grossen Stil durchgeführte Aussetzen von Fischen in Zielgewässer verstanden. Die Besatzfische werden meist in Aufzuchtsbächen oder in Zuchtanlagen aufgezogen. Hauptmotive für Besatz sind die Verringerung von durch den Menschen verursachte Störungen des Lebensraums, Wiederherstellung von Fischstämmen, Arterhaltung angestammter Arten und die Erhöhung des eigenen Angelertrages. Besatzmassnahmen sind bei Schweizer Anglern sehr populär und es gibt Hinweise darauf, dass Angler den Nutzen von Besatz überbewerten. Andererseits betrachten Ökologen und anderen Wissenschaftler aus dem Bereich der Fischerei Besatzmassnahmen kritisch, da Besatzmassnahmen das Potential zugeschrieben wird durch Konkurrenz, den Verlust von genetischer und adaptiver Vielfalt und die Verbreitung von Krankheiten und/oder Parasiten angestammte Arten und deren Erhaltung zu bedrohen bzw. zu gefährden. In der vorliegenden Arbeit sollen die Meinungen und Überzeugungen, die Angler in bezug auf Besatz haben, beleuchtet werden. Besonderes Augenmerk wird hierbei auf die Bachforelle (Salmo trutta) gelegt, da diese zu denjenigen Fischarten gehört, die von Schweizer Anglern bevorzugt werden. Neben der reinen Erhebung und Analyse dieser mentalen Modelle von Anglern zielt dies Forschungsprojekt ebenfalls darauf ab, die mentalen Modelle, die Angler zu Forellen und Besatzmassnahmen haben, zu verändern und damit umweltgerechteres Handeln zu fördern – sofern eine Änderung angebracht ist. Das Projekt, auf dem diese Dissertation basiert, war als interdisziplinäres Forschungsprojekt angelegt. Es bestand aus drei Projektabschnitten, in die jeweils Anteile aus der Fischerei- wissenschaft und der Psychologie eingeflossen sind. Im ersten Projektabschnitt wurde ein qualitativer Ansatz gewählt, um die mentalen Modelle, die Angler bezüglich Bachforellen, deren Ansprüchen an den Lebensraum und bezüglich Besatzmassnahmen haben, zu erheben und zu analysieren (N = 12). Eine schweizweite Fragebogenumfrage (N = 418) mit dem Hauptziel, die Ergebnisse aus der ersten Etappe zu validieren und zu erweitern, wurde im zweiten Projektabschnitt durchgeführt. Seitens der fischereiwissenschaftlichen Projektbeteiligung wurde in dieser Etappe Expertenwissen (basierend auf Literaturrecherchen) zu Besatzmassnahmen, Bachforellen und deren Ansprüchen an den Lebensraum zusammengestellt. Im dritten Projektabschnitt wurden Besatz-Erfolgskontrollen mit sechs verschiedenen Angelvereinen durchgeführt. Die Besatz- Erfolgskontrollen wurden zusammen mit den Ergebnissen aus den ersten beiden Projektabschnitten genutzt, um ein Interventionsprojekt zu planen, dass darauf abzielen sollte, die mentalen Modelle der Angler bezüglich Besatz zu verändern, sofern eine Veränderung angebracht sei. Das Interventionsprojekt war so gestaltet, dass die Angler aktiv in die Besatzerfolgskontrollen eingebunden waren und detaillierte Rückmeldungen zum Besatzerfolg (durch Berichte und während eines Abschlussworkshops) bekamen. Die Wirkung des Interventionsprogramms wurde mittels wiederholter Befragungen per Fragebogen erhoben, bezogen auf den Workshop wurden Ergebnisprotokolle auf einem Flipchart festgehalten. Als Hauptergebnisse wurden in der ersten, qualitativen Projektetappe ein additives und ein kompensatorisches mentales Modell zu Besatz und Forellenbeständen identifiziert. Das additive mentale Modell besagt hauptsächlich, dass Besatzmassnahmen unabhängig vom Ausmass der natürlichen Fortpflanzung von Bachforellen durchgeführt werden sollten, während das kompensatorische mentale Modell den Bedarf von Besatzmassnahmen vom Ausmass der natürlichen Fortpflanzung bei Bachforellen abhängig macht. Es postuliert, dass der Bedarf an Besatzmassnahmen sinkt, je besser das Ausmass der natürlichen Fortpflanzung bei Bachforellen ist. In der zweiten Projektetappe konnten diese beiden mentalen Modelle in einer grösseren, schweizweiten Anglerstichprobe wiedergefunden werden. In den Ergebnissen hat sich gezeigt, dass das additive mentale Modell bei Schweizer Anglern weit verbreitet ist, da ca. 2/3 der befragten Angler den additiven Denkstrukturen zugeordnet werden konnten. Des weiteren konnte das additive mentale Modell mit einer positiveren Einstellung zu Besatz in Verbindung gebracht werden, ebenso wie mit einer höheren Funktionalität in Bezug auf die Erreichung von Bewirtschaftungszielen in der Fischerei, einer geringeren umweltgerechten Orientierung und einer geringeren Risikowahrnehmung bezüglich Besatz im Vergleich zum kompensatorischen Modell. Hauptergebnisse der Besatzerfolgskontrollen im dritten Projektabschnitt waren, dass je zwei Vereinen aufgrund der biologischen Ergebnisse empfohlen werden konnte, mit Besatzmassnahmen weiterzumachen, die Besatzmassnahmen anzupassen beziehungsweise mit Besatzmassnahmen aufzuhören. Bezogen auf das durchgeführte Interventionsprojekt kann geschlussfolgert werden, dass es nicht gelungen ist, die additiven mentalen Modelle durch Intervention in kompensatorische mentale Modelle zu überführen. Allerdings konnten Veränderungstendenzen in relevanten psychologischen Bereichen ausgemacht werden und vier der sechs teilnehmende Vereine folgten den Projektempfehlungen teilweise oder sogar vollständig in Bezug auf zukünftige Besatzmassnahmen. Insgesamt kann festgehalten werden, dass die befragten Schweizer Angler sehr detaillierte mental Modelle zu Bachforellen, deren Lebensraumanforderungen und zu Besatzmassnahmen hatten, die die meisten relevanten Aspekte des zusammengestellten Expertenwissens gut abdeckten. Darüber hinaus hat sich bestätigt, dass der Ansatz, mentale Modelle zu analysieren sehr vielversprechend ist und ein umfangreiches Verständnis zu den Vorstellungen von Anglern bezüglich Besatzmassnahmen und Prozessen in Fliessgewässerökosystemen fördert. Auch wenn aufgrund des Interventionsprogramms keine signifikanten Veränderungen beobachtet werden konnten, hat die Interventionsstudie dennoch wertvolle Einsichten zur Rolle der Funktionalität mentaler Modelle für Theorie und Interventionsplanung vermittelt

Setting-dependent constraints on human restoration while visiting a wilderness park

Contact with nature can promote health and well-being through providing opportunities for restoring diminished psychological resources. Among those factors relevant for experiencing restoration are having a sense of being away from stress and daily demands. However, only little is known about how perceived interdependencies (in terms of social, behavioral and cognitive aspects) between settings usually relied on for restoration and those settings where stress and demands are encountered may impact having a sense of being away, and thus influence perceived restoration. In a visitor survey (N = 115) conducted at the Wilderness Park Zürich those perceived setting interdependencies that might influence having a sense of being away were assessed. The relationship between perceived setting interdependencies, having a sense of being away and restorative outcomes was analyzed by employing a structural equation model. The perceived setting interdependencies accounted for 26% of the explained variance for experiencing being away and had a negative indirect and total effect on perceived restorative outcomes. The more setting interdependencies a park visitor reported, the lower were the ratings for having a sense of being away and restorative outcomes. Researchers and practitioners who work with restorative environments and related domains are encouraged to further elaborate on setting-related aspects that may promote or hinder experiencing being away while spending time in an environment that is usually used for restorative purposes. These insights may be used to improve restoration of depleted psychological resources, to promote health and well-being, and thus to increase the overall visiting experience

Insights into fisheries management practices: using the theory of planned behavior to explain fish stocking among a sample of Swiss anglers.

Using inadequate management tools often threatens the natural environment. This study focuses on the example of Swiss recreational fishermen (hereafter called "anglers") as recreational fisheries management stakeholders. In recreational fisheries, fish stocking conducted by anglers has been identified as one important factor associated with declining fish catches. We therefore aimed to a) gain insights into why anglers want to maintain fish stocking and b) identify entry points for interventions to promote more pro-ecological management practices. Results (N = 349) showed that the majority of anglers think very uncritically about stocking and that they frequently engage in it. We conclude that outcome expectancies and beliefs about risks, in combination with a lack of stocking success controls are the main reasons that anglers retain stocking measures. We suggest that providing anglers with direct experience and feedback about stocking success is suitable to change their intentions regarding stocking and their actual stocking behavior, and thus, to promote more pro-ecological management methods. From a more general perspective, the results of this study are likely to help improve pro-ecological ecosystem management in other domains where problems similar to those in recreational fisheries management might exist

The restorative environment and salutogenesis : Complementary concepts revisited

In this chapter, the authors consider how research on restorative environments can augment research on salutogenesis by calling attention to the dynamics of depletion and renewal of resources needed for the maintenance and promotion of health and well-being and by showing how the sociophysical environment comes into play in people’s ongoing efforts to manage diverse resources. The authors also consider how research on salutogenesis can augment research on restorative environments by encouraging a broader view of the kinds of resources that can be depleted and the different levels on which they are organised and become available. The authors thus indicate areas for more systematic, reciprocal exchange between the fields

Structural equation model of latent constructs influencing an angler’s engagement in stocking-related activities.

<p>All path coefficients are standardized values; error terms are omitted due to reducing complexity of the figure.</p

Means (<i>M</i>), standard deviations (<i>SD</i>), range, and correlation matrix for the variables in the analysis.

<p><i>Note</i>. All N = 349; * = p<0.05; ** = p<0.01.</p>a<p>Codes for education: 1 = no degree, 2 = primary school, 3 = vocational school, 4 = higher professional training, 5 = technical college/university; higher numbers indicate higher level of education.</p>b<p>Codes for gender: 1 = female, 2 = male. Please note that almost all participants were male, therefore gender was excluded from all further analyses.</p><p>Means (<i>M</i>), standard deviations (<i>SD</i>), range, and correlation matrix for the variables in the analysis.</p

Conceptual model of constructs influencing an angler’s intention to engagement in stocking-related activities.

<p>Conceptual model of constructs influencing an angler’s intention to engagement in stocking-related activities.</p