Stress feedback from wearables; How useful or stressful is it for different individuals?
Additional information
Type of assignment: BSc. thesis
How many students? 2
Supervision: In (sub)groups
Includes data collection? Yes
Type of research: Mixed methods
Number of ECTS? 15 ECTS
Research assignment
This study concerns the field of wearable health technology, particularly devices that provide stress feedback, and studies their impact on the user's perception and management of stress. Recently, wearables have been seen more and more as important in supporting people to (self)manage their health and wellbeing (Ferguson et al., 2022). Among their various functions, stress management has emerged as an interesting feature given the potential harmful health effects of, particularly chronic, stress responses. This research aims to critically evaluate, also from a theoretical perspective (Epel et al., 2018), the effectiveness of these wearables in offering helpful and meaningful stress feedback and how this information influences the individual’s approach to stress.
The participants of the study are students, who will be monitored over a period of two weeks. This duration is divided into two phases for a comparative analysis. In the first phase, lasting one week, participants will report their stress levels without the aid of wearables. This serves as a baseline for their natural stress perception and management. Following this, the second phase introduces the wearable technology. Here, participants will continue to report their stress levels, but with the addition of stress feedback from the wearables. This phase is important for understanding the direct impact of the technology on the individuals' stress perception.
The study employs mixed-methods and a repeated single subject design. Quantitative data will be gathered from the experience sampling method, while qualitative data will be collected through end-of-study interviews. Experience sampling (Myin-Germeys & Kuppens, 2022) is useful as it provides real-time data on the participants' perceived stress levels, and also offering insights into their assessment of the appropriateness and usefulness of the stress feedback throughout the day. The interviews will explore how people reflect on the feedback from the technology in terms of appropriateness, frequency and their own goals.
Some example research questions: (1) How does the introduction of stress feedback from wearables influence individuals' perception of stress? (2) Is the stress feedback provided by these devices perceived as a useful tool for stress management, or does it become an additional source of stress? These questions are connected to understanding the dual potential of wearables as both potential contributors and detractors to healthy stress management.
Who do we look for?
Students interested in a nuanced analysis and careful in depth study of a limited number of participants (5-15 depending on design choices) in the potential of wearable technology as a tool to aid people in daily life to better recognize and manage their stress levels.
References
Epel, E. S., Crosswell, A. D., Mayer, S. E., Prather, A. A., Slavich, G. M., Puterman, E., & Mendes, W. B. (2018). More than a feeling: A unified view of stress measurement for population science. Front Neuroendocrinol, 49, 146-169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yfrne.2018.03.001
Ferguson, T., Olds, T., Curtis, R., Blake, H., Crozier, A. J., Dankiw, K., Dumuid, D., Kasai, D., O'Connor, E., Virgara, R., & Maher, C. (2022). Effectiveness of wearable activity trackers to increase physical activity and improve health: a systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses. The Lancet Digital Health, 4(8), e615-e626. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2589-7500(22)00111-X
Myin-Germeys, I., & Kuppens, P. (Eds.). (2022). The open handbook of experience sampling methodology: A step-by-step guide to designing, conducting, and analyzing ESM studies. (2nd ed.). Center for Research on Experience Sampling and Ambulatory Methods Leuven.