Categorie: fact checker

Studenten Applied Psychology & Technology schreven afgelopen semester (2022-2023) samen blogberichten. De 3 beste berichten, over virtual reality en pijnreductie, sociale media en alcoholmisbruik bij studenten en binge-watchen kan je hier nalezen.

Door Lucas Vervaecke & Alena Thöni

There’s nothing #technology can’t do. Recent #VR research shows promising results: is #virtualreality the innovative solution to give patients a break from #chronicpain?

Introduction

Chronic pain is difficult to treat, and it often happens that painkillers are insufficient. It is also the case that the side effects and costs of these are disruptive for long-term use (Wittkopf et al., 2019). But before we start with possible solutions, we first need to clarify how we end up with pain.

According to the neuromatrix theory of pain, cognitive, sensory, and affective inputs, as well as factors that influence them (such as attention), can partially change your pain and the response hierarchy disappears (Melzack, 2001). So, for example, if you are distracted then it is possible that you feel this pain much less. Virtual reality seems to be a very good way for this method.

How VR works

But distraction isn’t the only way VR is being used to reduce pain perception. From a review by Ahmadpour et al., (2020) they were able to recognize 3 targets of VR interventions.

1. Distraction

Tapping into the patient’s concentration using entertaining videos or games.

2. Change focus

respond to the patient’s cognitive resources through virtual tasks (e.g. tracking multiple objects).

3. Capacity or skill building

Teaching the patient the possibility of self-regulation using game-driven activities.

The use of VR for healthcare was pioneered by Hoffman et al. (2000) who had developed a VR video game (SnowWorld). This has been successfully used during the care of severe burns to reduce patients’ pain perception, in other words to distract them from the pain. It didn’t solve the problem, but the patients had a significant reduction in pain (65% of patients had an 34% reduction in worst pain).

Several games have also been made that did not necessarily only change the focus as a goal, but where this simply fits into this category. An example of this is Pizkorz and Czub’s (2018) trial that used a Multiple Object Tracking paradigm during a painful procedure. That is a virtual game in which players must remember and follow multiple moving objects. Here, the players had reported a significantly lower pain intensity compared to the control group (mean pain intensity = 15.16 ± 20.51 vs. 37.05 ± 30.66).

The trial was conducted to teach patients with chronic pediatric headaches to better control their mental state. By focusing to get from stress to a calmer mental state, where they then receive immediate visual feedback. Each person who participated experienced significant headache relief (Shiri et al., 2013).

Implementing games in healthcare is nothing new. Games have been tested before to distract people from their pain. Unfortunately, VR treatment for chronic pain is relatively new and more research needs to be done. It is also the case that all treatment methods (not just VR) of chronic pain do not work equally well for everyone.

Advantages and disadvantages of using VR applications in chronic pain treatments

Following the explanation of how VR can be used in pain therapy the question arises, what the advantages and disadvantages of this technology, used in pain treatment, are. There’s a wide range of arguments in this regard. One of the biggest advantages is that the use of VR technologies in pain treatment offers a treatment without pharmaceutical alternatives (Ahmadpour et al., 2020).

On the other hand, it is also important to be aware of the disadvantage of accessibility as well as occurring difficulties in the application, depending on the intensity of pain. Therefore, people with complicated health needs are excluded from the therapy, although they would need it the most (Ahmadpour et al., 2020), just because it is too complicated to apply it to an impaired body. Yet in the case of stroke patients, VR therapy proves to be effective because it is not only analgesic, but one can also target and exercise damaged brain regions, thus counteracting the lesion (Sato et al., 2010).

Probably the most obvious and therefore most promising advantage of VR use is the ability to provide patients with a pain-free environment that distracts from acute pain during painful medical procedures, but also acts as an escape possibility for chronic pain patients (Shiri et al., 2013).

When we talk about disadvantages, there’s a need to mention the design of the VR applications. If it should really be used as an alternative therapy to relief pain, the design must be suitable for the patient’s context. The VR experience must be satisfying and non-frustrating for the user, which means it’s important to include normal positive environments in the VR (Garrett et al., 2020).

Also, the technical operation often seems to be a barrier for the effective usage of VR applications. Considering, that people with chronic pain are often not able to walk around a room or even stand up right (Garrett et al., 2020). So, to conclude this part, yes VR seems very promising in the treatment of chronic pain although it must be mentioned that there are no peer reviewed studies which confirm the efficacy in chronic pain on a long-term scale (Gromala et al., 2015).

Is it a potential solution for medicine to manage chronic pain?

Considering the ongoing opioid crisis, we see especially in North America and industrialized nations (Gromala et al., 2015), having an option to treat pain and relief the patients is promising and motivating. The VR pain therapy offers a treatment completely without the risks of the side effect pharmaceutic alternatives have, e.g., opioid dependency (Ahmadpour et al., 2020).

But, to get to the point where this kind of therapy can be offered to all patients with chronic or acute pain, the applications need to be optimized. That’s why it’s recommended to include the patients in the design process because pain experiences differ from individual to individual.

To sum it up, VR can be a very promising application to relief people from pain or at least offer them a temporary escape out of their painful reality.

Bibliography

Ahmadpour, N., Keep, M., Janssen, A., Rouf, A. S., & Marthick, M. (2020). Design Strategies for Virtual Reality Interventions for Managing Pain and Anxiety in Children and Adolescents: Scoping Review. JMIR Serious Games, 8(1), e14565. https://doi.org/10.2196/14565

Garrett, B. M., Tao, G., Taverner, T., Cordingley, E. & Sun, C. (2020). Patients perceptions of virtual reality therapy in the management of chronic cancer pain. Heliyon, 6(5), e03916. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e03916

Gromala, D. G., Tong, X. T., Choo, A. C., Karamnejad, M. K. & Shaw, C. D. S. (2015). The Virtual Meditative Walk: Virtual Reality Therapy for Chronic Pain Management. Simon Fraser University.

Hoffman, H. G., Doctor, J. N., Patterson, D. R., Carrougher, G. J., & Furness, T. A. (2000). Virtual reality as an adjunctive pain control during burn wound care in adolescent patients. Pain, 85(1), 305–309. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0304-3959(99)00275-4

Melzack, R. (2001). Pain and the neuromatrix in the brain. Journal of Dental Education, 65(12), 1378–1382.

Piskorz, J., & Czub, M. (2018). Effectiveness of a virtual reality intervention to minimize pediatric stress and pain intensity during venipuncture. Journal for Specialists in Pediatric Nursing, 23(1), e12201. https://doi.org/10.1111/jspn.12201

Sato, K., Fukumori, S., Matsusaki, T., Maruo, T., Ishikawa, S., Nishie, H., Takata, K., Mizuhara, H., Mizobuchi, S., Nakatsuka, H., Matsumi, M., Gofuku, A., Yokoyama, M., & Morita, K. (2010). Nonimmersive Virtual Reality Mirror Visual Feedback Therapy and Its Application for the Treatment of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome: An Open-Label Pilot Study. Pain Medicine, 11(4), 622–629. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1526-4637.2010.00819.x

Shiri, S., Feintuch, U., Weiss, N., Pustilnik, A., Geffen, T., Kay, B., Meiner, Z., & Berger, I. (2013). A Virtual Reality System Combined with Biofeedback for Treating Pediatric Chronic Headache—A Pilot Study. Pain Medicine, 14(5), 621–627. https://doi.org/10.1111/pme.12083

Wittkopf, P. G., Lloyd, D. M., & Johnson, M. I. (2019). Managing limb pain using virtual reality: A systematic review of clinical and experimental studies. Disability and Rehabilitation, 41(26), 3103–3117. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638288.2018.1485183

Studenten Applied Psychology & Technology schreven afgelopen semester (2022-2023) samen blogberichten. De 3 beste berichten, over virtual reality en pijnreductie, Sociale media en alcoholmisbruik bij studenten en binge-watchen kan je hier nalezen.

Door Muriel Graf & Emma Scheers

Have you ever started watching only one single episode of your favorite series and ending with it after #14hours? Is #bingewatching the new addiction of #generationnetflix? How does #neftlixaddiction influence our body and health…?

What is binge-watching?

Binge-watching is a word that you have probably already heard of. In 2015 it was voted the British ‘word of the year ’(Susan Wright, 2015). But what does one mean by the word binge-watching?

Although there is no agreement about the exact definition of binge-watching, several authors have suggested that binge-watching can be defined as consecutively and intensely watching at least two to six episodes of a television series in one setting (Starosta & Izydorczyk, 2020).

How users consume media has shifted dramatically. Before the arrival of the dvd-box and online streaming, people had to wait a full week until they could watch the next episode of their show. Now people can ‘binge-watch’ the episodes or their favorite show, they can watch as many as they like (Susan Wright, 2015).

Why do people binge-watch?

There are several reasons for binge-watching (Starosta & Izydorczyk, 2020). Watching a series can help to avoid reality, and can be a way to cope with negative emotions and deal with loneliness. People tend to binge-watch because of the transportation into a fictional world, which is related to high emotional and cognitive engagement. Another reason can be FOMO, which means Fear of Missing out. Motivation for watching hours and hours from one series can also be that people want to feel able to join conversations. Beside all these reasons, binge-watching is a simple way to satisfy our needs. For example, it gives us the feeling of gratification (Rubenking & Bracken, 2021). Factors driving us even more to binge watch can be our family or friends or simply the need for entertainment or a way to procrastinate (Gangadharbatla et al., 2019).

Is binge-watching bad for us?

One of the most mentioned risks of binge-watching is addictive behavior. Symptoms of addictive behavior can be loss of self-control, feelings of urgency and regret, no longer following one’s duties and negative social and health consequences. There can also be symptoms like anxiety, nervousness, rage, and concentration difficulties, in case of the lack of possibility to do the additional behavior (Maèva Flayelle et al., 2019).

Using binge-watching to have an instant feeling of gratification and regulate one’s negative emotions is found to be a dysfunctional way of coping (Maèva Flayelle et al., 2019). Scientists also found relations between binge-watching and other mental disorders, for example depression, anxiety or sleeping problems (Starosta & Izydorczyk, 2020).

Beside addictive behavior there are many other consequences which can come up with binge watching. Some of them you might have experienced by yourself already. For example, missing school or work or physical outcomes like headache, exhaustion or feeling lethargic and lazy (Gangadharbatla et al., 2019).

On the other hand science says that binge-watching can also be just entertainment or a way to relax and spend our free time. So, whether it’s bad for us or not depends on the personal traits and the amount of binge watching (Starosta & Izydorczyk, 2020).

Can I continue to binge watch?

As you just read above, there are multiple reasons for binge-watching. Binge-watching can be a relaxing and entertaining activity on one hand, and on the other it can lead to an addiction, if it starts to be obsessive and compensatory. So, if you do binge watching, you should ask yourself: Why am I doing it, how do I feel after it? And if you answer this question with many of the symptoms from excessive binge watching which are described above, then you should maybe get some help. If not, relax and press play.

References

Gangadharbatla, H., Ackerman, C., & Bamford, A. (2019). Antecedents and consequences of binge-watching for college students. First Monday. https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v24i12.9667

Maèva Flayelle, , Pierre Maurage, , Laurent Karila, , Claus Vögele, & , and Joël Billieux. (2019). Overcoming the unitary exploration of binge-watching: A cluster analytical approach Journal of Behavioral Addictions Volume 8 Issue 3 (2019). https://akjournals.com/view/journals/2006/8/3/article-p586.xml

Rubenking, B., & Bracken, C. C. (2021). Binge watching and serial viewing: Comparing new media viewing habits in 2015 and 2020. Addictive Behaviors Reports, 14, 100356. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.abrep.2021.100356

Starosta, J. A., & Izydorczyk, B. (2020). Understanding the Phenomenon of Binge-Watching—A Systematic Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(12), Art. 12. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17124469

Susan Wright. (2015, November 5). Etymology Corner—’Binge-Watch’. Collins Dictionary Language Blog. https://blog.collinsdictionary.com/language-lovers/etymology-corner-binge-watch/

Video Reference:

AsapSCIENCE. (2017, 8 juni). Is Binge Watching Bad For You? [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJRzgl0FuMA

Studenten Applied Psychology & Technology schreven afgelopen semester (2022-2023) samen blogberichten. De 3 beste berichten, over virtual reality en pijnreductie, sociale media en alcoholmisbruik bij studenten en binge-watchen kan je hier nalezen.

By Manuel Arregui Carvajal & Loa Bucco

Breaking News

As if #alcohol consumption is not bad enough, #socialmedia is making the problem among #youngsters and adolescents even worse. Is prevention failing all the way through or is there still some hope left for science saving generations of alcohol abuse?

Social Media and Alcohol Abuse 

Today’s generation of teenagers and young adults are growing up in an environment of social media. Instagram and Tiktok, as well as various other platforms, are part of everyday life for many. These social media platforms use and encourage user-generated content and interactions with one another (Lenhart et al., 2005). However, in rece

nt years, pictures and messages related to alcohol, which remains the most used drug among adolescents (Johnston et al., 2013), are becoming more frequent in these types of “apps”. Although alcohol consumption, especially in adolescence, carries various risks and can lead to physical, psychological, and social harm (WHO, 2015), major alcohol brands have taken advantage of the influence that social networks have on young people for their advertising (Chester et al., 2010). In fact, researchers have estimated that approximately two-thirds of alcohol marketing is shared via social media (Saffer & Dave, 2006). Some of their strategies are product placement, sponsorship and celebrity endorsement (WHO, 2015).

Furthermore, even though there are many factors that play a role in young people’s drinking, research shows that young people develop their drinking behavior through assumptions about alcohol consumption among their peers, as well as through the observation of role models in the media (Anderson et al., 2009), where normally only the positive aspects of alcohol consumption are shown, and negative events, such as over-intoxication, are avoided (Moewaka et al., 2016). But what impact does this have on young adults?

Research has shown how social media can affect decision-making, since most of us are susceptible to our behavior being influenced by what we see on those platforms. Knowing that alcohol-related posts usually receive a lot of likes and comments, this can make people want to share similar content and therefore start drinking earlier and earlier. Thus, when younger, and more vulnerable, people only view alcohol content in a positive light, it makes drinking a normal behavior among these groups of people (Andrew, 2022). Finally, it has also been shown that adolescents’ self-concept is influenced by their interaction with media and vice versa (Steele & Brown, 1995), as well as their drinking self-identity.

Currently, behavioral health researchers have developed numerous mobile phone based mHealth interventions to treat health conditions such as AUD (alcohol use disorder), many of which depend on a primary function of mobile phones: text messaging. However, text-message-based interventions have shown mixed results (Quanbeck et al., 2014).

There have also been attempts to develop smartphone-based mHealth “apps”, however even those designed to reduce alcohol consumption have little or no evidence. This reflects that there is a need for the development of smartphone-apps to treat and reduce the problem with alcohol that more and more people suffer in our society (Meredith et al., 2015).

It can be concluded that social media acts as a widespread, readily available, and constantly accessible source of information for adolescents and young adults. In this regard, the power of interpersonal persuasion is combined with the reach of social media and which can consequently significantly influence the decisions of young adults and adolescents (Moreno et al., 2014). Thus, it is up to the scientific community to figure out how to effectively combat alcohol use and abuse among young adults and adolescents, and what prevention might look like, especially through social media.

 

References

ABC 10 News. (2017). Study says glamorization of alcohol on social media can lead to underage alcohol abuse [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CO9ox_agECs

Anderson, P., De Bruijn, A., Angus, K., Gordon, R., & Hastings, G. (2009). Impact of alcohol advertising and media exposure on adolescent alcohol use: a systematic review of longitudinal studies. Alcohol and alcoholism, 44(3), 229-243.

Andrew, D., (2022). Just a moment… . THE GOOD MEN PROJECT. https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/how-social-media-affects-alcohol-consumption/

Chester, J., Montgomery, K., & Dorfman, L. (2010). Alcohol marketing in the digital age. eSocialSciences.

Johnston, L. D., O’Malley, P. M., Bachman, J. G., Schulenberg, J. E. (2013). Monitoring the Future national survey results on drug use, 1975-2012. Volume II: College students and adults ages 19-50.

Lenhart, A., Madden, M., Paul Hitlin. (2005). Teens and Technology: Youth are leading the transition to a fully wired and mobile nation. Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Meredith, S. E., Alessi, S. M., & Petry, N. M. (2015). Smartphone applications to reduce alcohol consumption and help patients with alcohol use disorder: a state-of-the-art review. Advanced health care technologies, 1, 47.

Moewaka Barnes, H., McCreanor, T., Goodwin, I., Lyons, A., Griffin, C., Hutton, F. (2016). Alcohol and social media: drinking and drunkenness while online. Critical Public Health, 26(1), 62-76.

Moreno M.A., Whitehill, J.M., (2014). Influence of Social Media on Alcohol Use in Adolescents and Young Adults. Alcohol Research, 36(1), 91–100.

Quanbeck, A., Chih, M. Y., Isham, A., Johnson, R., & Gustafson, D. (2014). Mobile delivery of treatment for alcohol use disorders: a review of the literature. Alcohol research: current reviews, 36(1), 111.

Regional Office for the Western Pacific, W. H. Organization. (2015). How alcohol harms young people and what you can do about it. WHO. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WPR-2015-DNH-002

Saffer, H., & Dave, D. (2006). Alcohol advertising and alcohol consumption by adolescents. Health economics, 15(6), 617-637.

Steele, J. R., Brown, J. D. (1995). Adolescent room culture: Studying media in the context of everyday life. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 24(5), 551–576.

De Expertisecel Psychologie, Technologie & Samenleving heeft twee nieuwe leden voor het academiejaar 2022-2023. Ze stellen zichzelf hier kort voor.

Hallo! Ik ben Kimberley Bruggeman en loop van augustus tot maart 2023 mijn eindstage binnen de expertisecel Psychologie, Technologie en samenleving. Mijn academische carrière begon aan de Thomas More hogeschool waar ik mijn bachelorsdiploma heb behaald in de toegepaste klinische psychologie. Mijn passie voor onderzoek heb ik ook hier mogen ontdekken tijdens mijn exploratiestage aan de KU Leuven. Hier werkte ik aan onderzoek naar Religie en Zingeving op latere leeftijd met speciale aandacht voor vergeving en hechting. Na een schakeljaar ben ik nu bezig aan de masteropleiding theoretische en experimentele psychologie aan de Universiteit Gent. Ik ben enthousiast om te mogen leren over en (hopelijk) bijdragen aan het steeds groeiende domein van onderzoek naar de toepassing van technologie in mentale gezondheidszorg.

 

Hallo, ik ben Audrey Verrall. Ik ben een stagiaire aan de expertisecel voor een periode van 6-maanden startende in augustus 2022 tot februari 2023. Deze stage is de laatste stap in het behalen van mijn masterdiploma in de Theoretische- en Experimentele Psychologie (UGent). Ik ben enthousiast om een deel uit te mogen maken van dit geweldige team omdat het me de kans geeft om meer ervaring op te doen binnen toegepast onderzoek en meer bepaald in de potentiële positieve bijdragen van technologie op mentale gezondheid. Dit is een mooie toevoeging aan de theoretische inzichten die ik reeds vergaarde gedurende mijn master thesis over de effecten van ‘resonance breathing’ op ruminatie en affect en de meer praktijkgerichte skills die ik heb verworven door het beoefenen van mindfulness.

The Expertise Unit Psychology, Technology & Society is attending the 17th European Congress of Psychology in Ljubljana with several presentations. For each of the presentations, you can download the slides, including references below.

• Do’s and don’ts for online consultations and the challenging road towards good clinical practice using technology
  Tom Van Daele – PDF
• Fear of spiders: comparing effects of augmented reality on smartphone and HoloLens
  Nele De Witte – PDF
• Breathing to relax: A comparison of Virtual Reality-based and tablet-based breathing exercises
  Sylvie Bernaerts – PDF
• 360° Video or Digital Twin VR? Equal Sense of Presence, Different Realism
  Tim Vanhoomissen – PDF
• There’s no turning back now?! The potential of technology for mental healthcare
  Tom Van Daele – PDF
• How mental healthcare has been taking the lead in immersive technologies
  Tom Van Daele – PDF
• Digital Twins and the potential for mental healthcare
  Tom Van Daele – PDF

 

Het is de wens van iedere ouder om een warme en hechte band met zijn kind te hebben. Dat is echter niet vanzelfsprekend. Om verschillende redenen kan het zijn dat de relatie stroef loopt en dat je van het ene conflict naar het andere gaat. Ondanks al jouw goede bedoelingen en de liefde die je voor je kind voelt, heb je misschien toch het gevoel dat jij en je kind geen deel uitmaken van hetzelfde team.

Met FamilieLink ontwikkelt Learn2Trust (KU Leuven) in samenwerking met de Expertisecel Psychologie, Technologie en Samenleving een onlinehulpmiddel voor ouders met kinderen van 0 – 18 jaar die willen werken aan een hechte band met hun kind. In deze fase zijn we op zoek naar ouders die feedback willen geven op de gebruiksvriendelijkheid van een eerste versie van de tool. De tests gaan eind juni door bij Statik (Vital Decosterstraat 67A, 3000 Leuven) en nemen maximaal een uurtje tijd in beslag. Als bedanking voor je input krijg je na afloop een Fnac bon van € 10.

Bij interesse of vragen, contacteer Marlies Wintmolders via marlies.wintmolders@kuleuven.be of 016/32.29.56.