Την ερχόμενη Τετάρτη 26/3, 12:00, στην αίθουσα Παρθενώνα, θα έχουμε την χαρά και την τιμή να μας μιλήσει ο καθηγητής Leonard Reinecke, Professor for Media Effects and Media Psychology, Department of Communication, University of Mainz, Germany.
Η ομιλία του απευθύνεται κυρίως στους διδάσκοντες, ερευνητές, και τελειόφοιτους φοιτητές και φοιτήτριες μας, καθώς και σε όσους και όσες παρακολουθούν το μάθημα ‘Σεμινάρια για τη Σχεδίαση και την Έρευνα’.
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Digital Resilience? Chances and Risks of Digital Media Use for Mental Health and Psychological Well-Being
Leonard Reinecke, Professor for Media Effects and Media Psychology,
Department of Communication, University of Mainz, Germany
The last decade has brought fundamental changes in the use of media and communication technologies. Mobile devices have made constant access to media content and permanent connectedness to online networks and mediated communication the “new normal” in large parts of Western societies. At the same time, streaming platforms such as YouTube, Netflix or Spotify have fundamentally transformed the use of media entertainment, providing unprecedented digital autonomy to media users and making access to narratives and entertainment independent from time and space restrictions. For many users, these changes in the landscape of digital media represent a “double-edged sword”. On the one hand, this ubiquitous access to digital content and communication is a valuable resource that may foster psychological well-being by providing instantaneous access to need satisfaction, stress-recovery, or mood optimization. On the other hand, constant connectedness presents important challenges to self-regulation, increasing digital stress and adversity through distraction, self-control failure or social pressure to be constantly available. Against this backdrop, questions pertaining to digital resilience are of utmost importance to the fields of media psychology and HCI: What are the boundary conditions for positive versus negative effects of digital media use for mental health and psychological well-being? How can media users be resilient to the demands and challenges of digital media and communication technology? And how can users become more resilient through the benefits provided by digital media environments?
In my talk, I will aim at providing a short introduction to the concept of digital resilience and a brief overview of the research of my team and myself on the chances and risks of digital media use. I will then present two of our recent research projects in some more detail: With regard to the preconditions for a resilient use of digital media, our recent research addresses questions pertaining to media use disengagement. In this line of work, we try to better understand how media users deal with the constant availability of media content and communication and manage to successfully stop and disengage from media use in everyday life. With regard to the role of media use as a potential source of resilience, I will present some results of a recent longitudinal study that tests the effects of narratives and media entertainment on the development of resilience factors, such as hope, optimism, or meaning in life. I hope that the idea of digital resilience is also interesting from and HCI and design perspective and look forward to a discussion of how psychology- and technology-focused perspectives can be fruitfully integrated to extend our understanding of the chances and risks of digital media use.
