Arcadia Ireland

 This week for Wellbeing Wednesday I would like you to take a moment and think about the idea of “Slow Study Abroad”. As we prepare for our Ealu / Escape in Co. Clare we are going to ask you to step away a little from your phones and technology. We know that photos are important but we also ask you to challenge yourself a little and be fully present to the moment you are in. During orientation we asked you to close your eyes and remember back to the happiest memory in your life. We asked you to think about what was happening and the key question was 'were you on your phone when you were living the best experience'?

Mary E. Gomes, Ph.D., is a professor of psychology at Sonoma State University. She has been integrating electronic media fasts into her courses for over a decade. She writes about an experiment she has undertaken with college students and has outlined the benefits of taking a break from the screen. Check out these below:

Present-moment awareness

When I assign the media fast in my classes, I know that a “cold turkey” fast is unrealistic for most students. Their phones and computers are their main links to family, friends, schoolwork, and other commitments. Most will need to check and reply to messages at least once a day.

When students write about their experiences on the fast, one of the most common themes is “present-moment awareness.” Using a range of terms such as presence, sensory awareness, mindfulness, immersion, and flow, fully half of the students spontaneously describe these experiences as a hallmark of their fast, which typically kick in after a day or two. One student wrote “During my walks from my dorm to my classes, I took my time breathing in the fresh air”

Improved sleep

Electronic media is not your friend when it comes to getting a good night’s sleep, especially if it’s used in the hours close to bedtime. This is partly due to the physiological effects of the “blue light” of the screen, which impacts the brain’s production of melatonin, delaying the onset of sleep. In one study, for example, people reading on an e-reader at night, compared to those reading a print book, experienced delayed melatonin release, took longer to fall asleep, and felt less rested the next day. ―A student on a media detox

Deepened connections

Social media promises social connection, but the full richness of human relationships is best found face-to-face. Preteens, after five days at a camp without media use, outperformed their peers in recognizing nonverbal cues of emotion, an important foundation for empathy. In both laboratory and naturalistic studies, people felt less connected to conversation partners, and found their partners less empathically attuned, when a cell phone was present during the conversation.

In many of their papers, my students report improved connections with family, friends, and classmates as a benefit of the fast. “Not using my phone while with my friends was a way of working on my relationships, and I noticed a difference between the conversations that night compared to other times,” wrote one young woman. “Breaking away from media allowed me to be more empathetic to not only my own struggles but to others’ as well,” wrote another. One student invited her boyfriend to participate in the fast with her. As a result, she said, “We ended up sharing things about each other’s past that we hadn’t talked about before, so it felt good to get to know him a little deeper.”

Productivity and learning

Any work that requires a focused mind will benefit from a media break. This has been vividly demonstrated in a number of recent studies, summarized by Nicholas Carr in the 2017 essay “How Smartphones Hijack Our Minds.” In classroom settings, he notes, mobile phones disrupt learning through the distractions of “task-switching,” as students text or surf the internet in class.

In my class media fast, I often hear accounts from students about their newfound ease of learning. Many of them mention improved study skills and less procrastination during the fast.

“I was able to stay on top of my assignments and get all my work done in a more efficient manner and with a lot more focus,” wrote one student. “Being able to see first hand how my mind was affected by this fast was an eye-opening experience”