Digital Health & Wellness

Jessica Sharkey, David Palmer, and Eric Schoonard

Ergonomics

Muscular Skeletal Problems

• Muscle strains and low back injuries• Elbow problems• Carpal tunnel syndrome• Rotator cuff injuries• Tendinitis• Trigger finger

Jobs with Muscular Skeletal Problems • Assemblers and

fabricators• Stock clerks and

order fillers• Light truck or

delivery services drivers

• Maintenance and repair workers

• Production workers• Retail salespersons• Maids and

housekeeping cleaners

• Police and officers• Firefighters • Nursing assistants• Laborers• Janitors and cleaners• Heavy and tractor-

trailer truck drivers• Registered nurses• First-line supervisors

of retail sales workers

Internet addiction and psychological well-being

Survey Says…US students over 8 years old spend an average of 6.43 hours per day on electronic media(Yang, Helgason, Sigfusdottir, & Kristjansson, 2013)

Higher levels of internet associated with lower levels of

well-being• Loneliness; Self-isolation• Emotional Health: Depression; Low self-

esteem • Social discomfort; poor social adaptation

and social skills; communication with peers• Poor coping skills

Findings 1

Higher levels of internet usage equates with lower levels of

well-being • Diminished impulse control – (need for instant gratification)

• Aggressive Behavior (violent gaming) • Teens are becoming less independent

because parents can always access their children. (essential to finding one’s identity)

Findings 2

Impacts on the Brain• Only the left side of the brain is used

when a person is texting and interacting with a computer screen.

• Brain is still “under construction”

• Brain develops by stimulation-Neuroplasticity

• Right side of brain isn’t getting the stimulation it needs to develop

Impacts on the Brain• Attention Deficit Disorder: – Need for constant entertainment– Inability to delay gratification

• Brain is on overload– can’t process all the information

• Decrease in ability to feel empathy– don’t see how what they do effects others

Social and Emotional Effects

Conflicting Research• Internet usage has a positive effect

on socialization and self-concept(Desjarlais & Willoughby, 2010)(Mathers et al., 2009)

• Other studies show that computer usage has a negative effect on these same areas(Heim, Brandtzaeg, Kaare, Endestad, & Torgersen, 2007)

We all know … TV is badSeveral studies link excessive TV and video games in children to…– Attention problems– Lower long-term educational outcomes– Increased substance abuse– Higher rates of obesity– Lower cognition function for children.

(Kappos, 2007)

But can we trust the research?

New massive study in Iceland (n=10,829)

• Five different types of internet use:

– TV/VCR/DVD– Internet computer games– Non-internet computer games– Internet chatting / social media– Other computer use

New massive study in Iceland (n=10,829)

• Five questions of negative wellbeing– Feeling sad with little interest in doing

things– Little appetite– Felt lonely– Cried easily or wanted to cry– Had sleeping problems– Felt sad or blue– Felt that the future was hopeless

Findings 1Students who were on electronics

4+ hours a day

were

2-5 times more likely

to experience negative indicators

Findings 2

Girls were significantly

more affected by increased use

(although they were less likely to use in excess)

Findings 3

No one area of computer use had

more of an effect than another

and

This was merely correlational findings not causational

(Yang et al., 2013)

Multitasking

Does it have side effects?

Discovery Girls Study (Pea et al., 2012)

Research question:

How does media and media multitasking affect feelings of social success and social wellbeing?

Finding 1

Older girls multitask more

Finding 2Media multitasking was associated

with:

Less social successNot feeling normal

Sleeping lessAnd fewer parent-approved friends

Finding 3Face-to-face communication was associated

with:

More social successGreater feelings of normalcy

Sleeping moreAnd more parent-approved friends

Two Quotes“People who frequently interact with people face to face seem to feel less

need to use other media while doing so.”

“Even media meant to facilitate interactions between children, are associated with unhealthy social

experiences.”

Possible Solutions 1• Establish rules: have conversation about

concerns, appropriate usage, time allotted

• Embrace the media world: Be involved and aware of what teens are doing online

• Teach teenagers what’s appropriate and inappropriate regarding social media

• Be a role model: adults are often glued to computers/phones as well

Possible Solutions 2• Teach empathy, which some lack due to

technology

• Encourage other interests besides technology

• Balance brain usage

• Take breaks from being on computer

• Awareness of Cyberbullying, Cybersex and sexting on well-being

Apps to promote healthy usageSelf-Control

Time Out

Rescue Time

RescueTime

RescueTime

Summary1. Research is trailing digital ecology

2. TV Internet / Smart-life

3. Moderate use vs. Excessive use

4. Gender effects: genetic or environmental?

Bibliography• Akin, A., Iskender, M. (2011) Self-Compassion and Internet Addiction. Turkish Online Journal of Educational

Technology, Volume 10 (3), 215-221• Ayas, Tuncay. (2012)The Relationship between Internet and Computer Game Addiction Level and Shyness

among High School Students. Educational Sciences: Theory and Practice. Educational Consultancy and Research Center. www.edam.com.tr/estp

• Cain, N., & Gradisar, M. (2010). Electronic media use and sleep in school-aged children and adolescents: A review. Sleep Medicine, 11(8), 735–42. doi:10.1016/j.sleep.2010.02.006

• Cardak, M. (2013). Psychological well-being and internet addiction among university students. Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology, Volume 12 (3), 134-141

• Desjarlais, M., & Willoughby, T. (2010). A longitudinal study of the relation between adolescent boys and girls’ computer use with friends and friendship quality: Support for the social compensation or the rich-get-richer hypothesis? Computers in Human Behavior, 26(5), 896–905. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2010.02.004

• Eksi, Fusun. (2012) Examination of Narcissistic Personality Traits’ Predicting Level of Internet Addiction and Cyber Bullying through Path Analysis. Educational Sciences: Theory and Practice. Educational Consultancy and Research Center. www.edam.com.tr/estp

• Heim, J., Brandtzaeg, P. B., Kaare, B. H., Endestad, T., & Torgersen, L. (2007). Children’s usage of media technologies and psychosocial factors. New Media & Society, 9(3), 425–454. doi:10.1177/1461444807076971

• Ives, E., Peters, M., Truesdell, E. (2010) iGeneration: The Social Cognitive Effects of Digital Technology on Teenagers. San Rafael, CA.

• Kappos, A. D. (2007). The impact of electronic media on mental and somatic children’s health. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health, 210(5), 555–62. doi:10.1016/j.ijheh.2007.07.003

• Mathers, M., Canterford, L., Olds, T., Hesketh, K., Ridley, K., & Wake, M. (2009). Electronic media use and adolescent health and well-being: cross-sectional community study. Academic Pediatrics, 9(5), 307–14. doi:10.1016/j.acap.2009.04.003

• Pea, R., Nass, C., Meheula, L., Rance, M., Kumar, A., Bamford, H., … Zhou, M. (2012). Media use, face-to-face communication, media multitasking, and social well-being among 8- to 12-year-old girls. Developmental Psychology, 48(2), 327–36. doi:10.1037/a0027030

• Yang, F., Helgason, A. R., Sigfusdottir, I. D., & Kristjansson, A. L. (2013). Electronic screen use and mental well-being of 10-12-year-old children. European Journal of Public Health, 23(3), 492–8. doi:10.1093/eurpub/cks102