Dear Diary

Dear Diary Media and Design 22

Fashion-Diary Jeanne, Yuliya, Isabell, Kati and Alexandra

FASHION DIARY

By: Katharina Fina, Jeanne Andela, Isabell Tolymat, Yuliya Kostadinova

INTER VIEWS At the beginning of the semester, we went out and asked people if they had a diary as well as what type of content they log in their diaries. We found that most people either didn't use a diary because they didn't feel like it was useful or they had a diary, but only wrote about their feelings and general strong emotions that they would experience from certain events.

A few people who sparked our curiosity regarding other's understanding of a diary

TALKING ABOUT DIARIES AND EXPRESSION OF EMOTIONS, WE ALSO STARTED LOOKING INTO FASHION

THROUGH MEETING MORE AND MORE PEOPLE, WE SAW HOW EMOTIONS MANIFEST EVEN THROUGH CLOTHES

Our idea

Now having spoken to all the people who participated in using our fashion diary, we were able to reflect upon its usage.

According to the people who participated in using our fashion diary, people were able to reach a greater self-awareness with their clothing and psychological experiences. None of our participants had ever used a diary in this sense, which for some of them turned out to be an eyeopening experience. Most individuals picked their outfits based on the weather and their mood in the morning, but ultimately it was the experiences throughout the day that determined how each person felt in their outfit in the end.

While a typical diary may be a bit bland for some people, our fashion diary could be a good alternative for those that need extra engagement in their life's reflection.

PSYCHOLOGY

ASPECTS

Not only does clothing possess a psychological impact on your mental state, but your mental state can also influence your choice of clothing in your everyday life.

'Enclothed Cognition' is a term created by Hajo Adam and Adam D. Galinsky, two experimentalists, that suggests that the clothes that an individual wears, influences their cognition, as they begin to associate the attire with certain symbolism. Whether thats; professionalism, modesty, etc.

As a first test of our enclothed cognition perspective, the current research explored the effects of wearing a lab coat. A pretest found that a lab coat is generally associated with attentiveness and carefulness. They therefore predicted that wearing a lab coat would increase performance on attention-related tasks

PSYCHOLOGY

ASPECTS

Colors, textures, length, size of clothing can all have an effect on our self-confidence, and mental state in general.

Clothing has a direct impact on our mood, attitude, and confidence. It can boost our psychological condition as well as our work performance. We may do more when we believe we are appropriately suited for the occasion.

Different emotions may be expressed via the style, material, color, and form of our clothing.

Colour psychology is the study of colours as a factor in human behaviour.

Carl Jung is regarded as a pioneer in this discipline as he urged patients to utilize color. He believed it would help them communicate some of the deeper areas of their mind. It is considered that the colors you choose indicate a deeper significance about your personality features.

PSYCHOLOGY Previous study has indicated that women dressed in red or suggestive clothes are viewed as more attractive, having more sexual purpose, and having more negative traits than women dressed in other colors or less suggestive apparel.

This predisposition toward interpreting sexual intent might be related to evolution or to people projecting their feelings onto others.

The texture influences emotions and produces a personal response, such as attraction or rejection. A smooth, uniform texture can provide a pleasant sense of tranquility, but a rough, uneven, geometric structure can provide a lively rhythm. The texture of outfits is quite important.

STARTING POINT The idea for this project stemmed from a colleague who recorded her outfits and organized them by weather, occasion, and mood. She shared how she often reflected on the outfits she had worn and whether or not she was satisfied with them at the end of the day. We found this to be an intriguing idea, so we decided to use the concept as the foundation for our project.

STARTING POINT The Calendar recording that sparked our idea. Each day, our colleague would write down what outfits she had worn and organize them all in categories by garment, occasion, and mood.

CONCEPT AND WHY The Diary is seen as a tool to conceptualise and document the thoughts, feelings and impressions that impact our fashion choices. This tool aims to facilitate styling oneself as it provides the participant with a Documentation of their fashion history.

This may help participants find a way of styling their clothes that feels authentic and empowering to them We drew our inspiration for this project through our observations of passerbys and conversations within our group. Our interest lies with the impact that colour image style and beauty has on human behaviour and the potential these factors have in shaping our interpersonal relationships and the the cultural landscape we live in.

DELIVERY We created a fashion diary that incorporated the previously mentioned concepts as the foundation for this project. By using the psychological aspect as well as the physical engagement of wearing the outfits and reflecting upon them, the diary may present itself as beneficial for some..

DELIVERY

Simple in design, the diary gives absolute freedom to the user to write, draw, and simply fill out the pages. It has the potential of making individuals more aware of how their clothing or style may affect their mental state through simple and quick daily writings.

We tested a total of 12 people.

Out of the 12 people, 9 female and 3 male participants.

Testing

As we had difficulty in finding random people who agreed on following the diary for a week, we instead turned to our friends Most of them completed the whole diary and did not skip sections.

Five people skipped a section of the daily writing, but all completed the association section.

Due to technical difficulties it was necessary to adapt the format of the diary so that it is accessible as an online version as well.

We had two options- to either fill out the pdf through Lumin or as a word document

Results Major Results: Colour Associations 01

Male vs Female: Men associated colours with objects, events, brands, while women focused more on feelings and emotional impressions Commonly shared perspective: fear and anger

RED

Intimacy, power, passion, aggression

ORANGE YELLOW GREEN BLUE PURPLE PINK BROWN GREY WHITE BLACK

Oranges, fruits, summer, Netherlands; prefer not to wear Happiness, lemons, childish, sun, sickness; prefer not to wear Nature, calmness, peace, grounding Sea, sky, peace, sadness, sophisticated Royal, bravery, authority, mystery, spirituality Girly, sweet, fairies, lovely, empowering Nature, grounding, posh, leather; prefer not to wear Neutral, boring, serious, simple Clean, pure, organized, religion, hospitals, death Classy, polished, night, cosmos, fear, mystery, death

Results Major Results: Garment Associations 02

A lot of similarities with the associations for each garment even if people did not like or wear them Lazy, cosy, casual, teenagers

T-SHIRT

Elegant, mature, confident, success, skill

SHIRT

Winter, comfort, warmth, itchy

SWEATER

Laziness, sadness, fitness

HOODIE

TURTLENECK Steve Jobs, polished; common dislike JEANS

Universal, classic, USA, party, casual

TROUSERS

Classy, professional, fancy, polished Feminine, elegance, summer, Scotland

SKIRT DRESS

Feminine, attractive, confidence, elegance

BLAZER SNEAKERS HEELED SHOES

Trendy, uniform, business, suit Casual, playful, youthful, comfort Classy, boldness, elegance, superiority

There were multiple patterns in the daily writing of the 12 participants.

Results

Participants found it easier to follow their morning thought process than to reflect 01 at the end of the day Participants mostly took into account the weather and temperature; time did not 02 matter much- their preparation began from the day before or early in the morning People who focus on feeling comfortable 03 put less emphasis on other's opinions/compliments Compliments from women and people of higher social standing were taken more 04 seriously Discomfort, fear, sadness made it less likely for participants to wear those clothes again in the same situations

05

Women wore clothes with more colours and patterns, while men stuck to neutral, 06 monochrome pallets Participants would change the colours, pattern, or styles they wore if they had a 07 negative experience with the other outfit

The Women’s Journey Stella, Aneta, Bíbor and Azalea

THE WOMAN'S

Journey

This brochure summarizes the findings of our project on raising awareness about changes in a woman's body throughout the menstruation cycle and investigating these self-perceived changes by means of a personal diary.

SS 22 1

Starting point

INSPIRATION: PERSONAL RELEVANCE

Our inspiration was to create a diary that is not only simple and easy to use but also something a life-changing experience for those who were participating. In the following pages, we would like to guide you through our personal journey from finding the topic, to our principles and mission, raising awareness about menstruation itself, making the diary itself and presenting the results of our testing. Hope you enjoy it!

We were discussing our topic back when we were given the exercise and just brainstormed in the cafeteria. We were considering a lot of different aspects of how life has an impact on us since we wanted to work on something potentially influential and beneficial, something that other people can relate to. Not only that, but it would have the possibility to be life-changing and even eyeopening for some people, and also by having this diary it can

help

unravel

hidden

problems

and

have

the

possibility create a new habit. Not to mention, we wanted to set our hearts to something close to what we all share and relate to within the group: we are women. From then on, our topic, menstruation and what surrounds it almost instantly came to our minds, to create this diary where women could track their menstrual cycles, but not in just any way.

2

"Our mission is to raise awareness about what a woman goes through every month.

We aim to provide a helping hand to women in the process of trying to understand themselves during this natural process."

3

Menstrual cycle IN A NUTSHELL...

12

is the average age when a girl menstruates for the first time.

5 28 450

is the average length of the menstruation phase itself.

is the average length of the whole menstrual cycle.

is the average number of period cycles in a lifetime.

WHAT IS A MENSTRUAL CYCLE?

A young lady begins to ovulate when she enters puberty and the whole cycle is connected with many changes in the body and has several phases. The cycle begins on the first day of one period and concludes on the first day of the next. The whole menstrual cycle is 28 days long on average.

WHAT IS OVULATION?

When a developed egg or ovum is discharged from one of the ovaries located in a pelvis, this is known as fertilization. On day 14, the average woman ovulates. Some women experience slight discomfort in their lower abdomen, spotting, or bleeding at this time, while others have no symptoms at all.

WHAT IS MENSTRUATION?

Menstruation is the period during which a woman's uterine lining (endometrium) is shed. This happens to a woman throughout her reproductive years. The endometrium prepares itself to support a fetus with each monthly cycle. Increased estrogen and progesterone levels aid in the thickening of its walls. The endometrium, combined with blood and mucus from the vagina and cervix, makes up the menstrual flow that leaves the body through the vagina during the period if fertilization does not occur.

4

WHEN DOES IT START?

A young lady has her first menstrual period around the age of 12. This usually happens two to three years after her breasts begin to expand. She also discovers pubic and underarm hair at this time. Stress, strenuous exercise, and food can all influence when a girl gets her period for the first time.

HOW LONG IS THE CYCLE?

The average menstrual cycle lasts 28 days. It begins on the first day of the previous period and concludes on the first day of the next period. Women's cycles, on the other hand, vary in duration and they are highly individualized, especially in the first year or two after a young woman's first period.

In order to quantify this, it can be said that

women's periods might be as short as 21 days or as lengthy as 45 days and anything in the range between can be considered a healthy cycle.

Menstrual cycle

IN A NUTSHELL...

5

What changes during a cycle?

BOTH PHYSICALLY AND ON THE BASIS OF SELFPERCEPTION

Handy et al. (2022) investigated the physical discomfort caused by hormonal changes during the pre-menstruation and menstruation phases (i.e., low levels of estrogen and progesterone). They found that these hormonal imbalances can also result in decreased self-esteem during the menstruation phase.

They compiled research on the worsening of a number of psychiatric problems in adult women throughout their menstrual cycle. The premenstrual and menstrual periods are the most frequently associated with transdiagnostic symptom aggravation.

Specifically, considerable evidence suggests that during these phases, there is a rise in psychosis, mania, depression, suicide/suicide attempts, and alcohol usage. During the luteal phase, anxiety, stress, and binge eating tend to be more prevalent.

In our project, we thus also asked our participants about any symptoms or physical discomfort during the whole cycle to address this issue empirically. Furthermore, we included the question of rating their current confidence level in order to investigate whether there are any subjective changes in self-esteem. Last but not least, we wanted them to think about themselves in a positive light, thus we included the question on coming up with one thing they appreciate about themselves. Hence, even in the dark moments, they feel powerful in their own skin.

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Psychological aspects of diaries... ...AND THEIR BENEFITS ON MENTAL HEALTH

The regular activity of writing a diary helps with gaining insight, increasing awareness, and

prioritizing

tracking possible symptoms.

Furthermore, it helps people to recognize triggers and learn better ways to control them. The study by Lodhi, Singh and Sharma (2018) focused on the effects of diary writing on adolescent girls' mental

health. An unintentional sampling strategy was used to choose a sample of 100 girls in their first year of graduation. 50 people were assigned to the experimental group and 50 to the control group. The independent variable was diary writing, which was employed for 3 months and required girls to write down their thoughts and feelings for 30 minutes five days a week. The results showed that there was a substantial difference in adolescent girls' mental health between the experimental and control groups. The results of this study showed that journaling enhanced the mental health of the girls significantly. Writing about traumatic, stressful, or emotional events improves

both

physical

and

psychological

health

in

nonclinical

and

clinical

populations. A chance to note feelings and thoughts independently, understand and recognize issues. The long-term effects show the emotional health outcomes; for instance, less stress during the exam period.

7

WHAT DOES CURRENT RESEARCH SHOW?

Taffe and Dennerstein (2002) conducted a study on menstrual diary data to minimize uncertainty about the meaning of gaps in menstrual diary data. Methodologic improvements that can help to achieve this aim include the design of diary cards and fieldwork procedures to reduce uncertainty. The study tried to identify and propose solutions to difficulties that arise during the analysis of menstrual diary data in a longitudinal study of the menopausal transition. The study is based on data from 372 women's menstrual diaries collected over a seven-year period. The methods and decisions involved in translating this data into a format suited for answering research questions are examined in this work. Results show that difficulties in differentiating between extended periods and gaps due to recording failures have been linked to the design of menstruation diary cards as well as fieldworker methods. A novel design is offered that should reduce such challenges. Changes in the procedure are also proposed. In studies of the menopausal transition, it is critical to reducing confusion about the interpretation of gaps in menstrual diary data. Designing diary cards and fieldwork techniques to reduce uncertainty are two methodologic innovations that can help achieve this goal. Other significant tasks include designing data entry interfaces to make validating raw data easier and using graphs as a diagnostic tool.

Menstrual diaries & women's health

8

PRESENTING THE PROJECT

The Woman's Journey STAGE 1: DESIGNING THE PRODUCT (March - April)

We decided to create a diary that is personal, userfriendly and can be utilised on an everyday basis. They can start in any phase of the menstruation cycle. We decided to choose four questions that repeat every day.

There are 3 Likert-scale questions (1-5) and one openended question.

1. How good is your mood today?

2. How does your body feel today?

3. How confident do you feel right now?

4. What do you appreciate about yourself?

STAGE 2: TESTING (May - June)

Once the diary was complete, the prototype was sent to 16 women, aged 16-25 who had not yet had children. They were asked to follow a diary for one menstrual cycle (≈ 30 days) and write down how their body felt during that time.

STAGE 3: REFLECTION (June)

At the end of the testing stage, we sent our participants a short reflection where they shared their experiences with the diary where the following questions were included: 1. What impacts did it have on your cycle's perception?

2. Did you notice anything new about your body?

3. Will you continue writing the diary?

4. How much did you enjoy the process?

5. How much did it benefit you in any way?

6. How committed were you to this project?

7. Would you change anything?

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Insights into our diary

10

FROM THE PILOT TESTING

Our findings

HOW DID THE TESTING WORK?

One of our main aims, since our topic is a personal issue, was to make our participants as comfortable as possible, and give them an entirely secure, safe space to write. We desired to make the diary be like a trustworthy friend to them, therefore, we have never asked to have the diaries back, and have not looked at any of the data.

The pilot version of the diary was designed for 40 days and we asked our participants to follow the diary for one menstrual cycle; hence, so participants finished after 24 days and some need up to 38 days. In terms of the format, we let them choose the way that suited them the best to use the diary. An interactive PDF was originally sent but we also provided an option to print the diary out and use it in its physical copy.

As mentioned before, what we did instead was that we sent them a reflection form, which does not invade the confidentiality of the participants’ answers to the diary. The 7 questions that we integrated into the reflection form were more general and abstract. The information that we needed to get for our project was about the role of the diary during the subjective experience of the cycle, its functions, the participants’ commitment to writing the diary, their feelings, and the overall evaluation of the diary.

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‘’I caught myself analyzing my body and its changes even more. I noticed changes on my skin

The answers that we obtained from our reflection form were incredibly positive, in

the

sense

that

we

our

the woman's monthly journey, not only among the people to us but to the participants themselves. For example, when we asked about the impacts that

that I tend to overlook

the diary had on the participants and

like more breakouts

say that almost all of our participants,

and redness. I also noticed more strength in the time of the cycle which surprised me.’’

their observations, it is remarkable to did realize things about their body that have

never

known

before,

and

appreciated themselves.

There was even one participant, who benefited from the diary also in a separate way, by helping her become more organized and aware of the time

Our findings

FROM THE PILOT TESTING

12

fulfilled

primary aim, to raise awareness about

of participants plan to

90%

continue writing the diary after the end of the testing

is the average score of

4.30

commitment in the project on an increasing scale of 1-5 points

is the score of subjective

4.30

evaluation of advantageous impacts of the project on a scale of 1-5 points 13

BASED ON THE PILOT TESTING

Feedback & improvements We were open to criticism, of our own construction of the diary and therefore, we decided to include a question asking our participants about possible improvements or issues they had with the diary that we could use in the process of building The Woman’s Journey 2.0. We got several responses with participants being fully satisfied with our set-up, but also some great suggestions which we will definitely keep in mind for future projects.

‘’ I would like to see also a question on summarizing my whole day - whether I did some sports activity or something to take care of myself because I noticed that when I did such activity, my level of confidence was much higher.

‘’ I would like to also add the question “what I am most grateful for” in order to see what I appreciate / need more in each day of the cycle’’

‘’The last question did not suit me; it was hard to answer it especially when I was in a bad mood/ had a bad day. Something like "how are you felling right now" would be better.’’

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Final remarks IS THIS THE END OF THE JOURNEY?

As described in detail above, the topic of a menstrual cycle is something that almost every woman has to deal with on a daily basis and its impacts on mental and physical states are sometimes underestimated and neglected even by women themselves.

These impacts can be both positive and negative and it is essential to say that every woman experiences this in a very nuanced way. This project thus aimed to help young women to learn how to listen to their bodies throughout the whole month. We believe that self-perception is the best way how to fully understand the natural changes and therefore, using the diary-tracking method as a means to achieve this worked more than smoothly.

"It helped me come to the realization that periods are a part of our lives and it affects our daily routines. I realized that it is okay that I was feeling a certain way and that some days my mood really depends on my cycle.

We would thus like to thank all our participants who decided to share their individual journeys with us because without them the project would not be possible.

We truly hope that this experience was advantageous for them in any way and that they will benefit from the new self-knowledge in the future.

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Contact information Sigmund Freud University, Vienna International Psychology Programme (BSc) MEDIA THEORY & DESIGN (SS 2021-22)

STELLA PANAYIOTIDOU

62102859@mail.sfu.ac.at

BÍBOR SIMON

62102839@mail.sfu.ac.at

AZALEA TUN

62102811@mail.sfu.ac.at

ANETA ZAVADILOVÁ

62102868@mail.sfu.ac.at

16

Keeping Up with Yourself Carlota, Elena, Emma, Nadine & Valerie

5 Words a Day Chiara, Annisia, Anna & Mathilda

Zitate – Tagebuch und du?

Wir haben uns auf die Straßen und in unsere bekannte Umgebung begeben um unsere Freunde, Bekannten, Familie und auch fremde zu fragen „Tagebuch und du?“. Damit wollten wir herausfinden wie die Menschen zu Tagebüchern stehen. Das hier sind ihre Antworten:

„Brauch ich nicht, hab alles im Kopf.“ -Gunnar

„Zusammenfassungen sind wichtig, vor allem beruflich damit man sich wichtige Fakten, während einem Meeting niederschreiben kann.“ -Petra

„Ich finde vor allem To-do Listen in stressigen Wochen, Monaten sehr nützlich, weil sie einen helfen, organisiert zu bleiben.“ - Laura

„Ich find es gut, wenn man sich Listen schreibt, dabei ist es egal, ob sie handschriftlich oder am Handy sind.“ - Florian

„Ich habe in der Volksschule mal ein Tagebuch geführt, habe aber relativ schnell wieder aufgehört. Jetzt benutze ich nur noch einen Kalender, damit ich meine Termine im Griff habe.“ - Luka

„Ich würde so gerne Tagebuch führen. Ich hab’s schon öfter probiert aber ich vergesse oft einzutragen oder bin dann doch zu faul. Ich finde es aber grundsätzlich eine gute Idee, um den Kopf freizubekommen und Gedanken zu ordnen. Ich habe mit 15 das erste Mal versucht Tagebuch zu führen jedoch hat das nicht lange gehalten.“ Amelie

„Ich habe während meiner ersten Beziehung Tagebuch geführt. Ich habe oft meine Gedanken und Probleme ins Tagebuch geschrieben und würde sagen, dass ich somit einigen Streits aus dem Weg gegangen bin. Ich habe jedoch gleich aufgehört, sobald die Beziehung vorbei war.“ Theresa

„Ich finde es ist eine sehr gute Idee, aber ich bin leider nicht diszipliniert genug. Ich habe es einmal für ca. ein halbes Jahr probiert als ich 13 war. Da habe ich alle meine

-

-

Gedanken und Erlebnisse niedergeschrieben. Ich will aber anfangen ein traumtagebuch zu führen.“ -Tosca

„Ich mag Tagebücher nicht, weil ich es hasse sie nochmal durchzulesen. Mir ist das peinlich was ich damals geschrieben habe. Mit 16 Jahren habe ich es probiert und hab nach einigen Monaten wieder aufgehört. Daraufhin habe ich es noch 1-2 mal probiert und immer wieder aufgehört.“ -Chiara

„Find ich eine sehr sinnvolle Angelegenheit, weil es einem hilft die Gedanken zu ordnen und man kann schöne Momente aufschreiben, um sie nicht zu vergessen.“ - Philippa

„Ein Monatsbuch find ich besser. Denn das blöde am Tagebuch ist, dass ich es nicht möchte, das es jemand anderer liest – Datenschutz.“ - Nikolaus

„Das beste Tagebuch ist jeden Tag 3 Dinge aufschreiben, die einem an diesem Tag gefallen haben. Wenn es war, sehr Dramatisches ist, kann man es auch dazu schreiben.“ - Hemma

„Eine interessante Sache. Eine Erfindung des Menschen, um in die Vergangenheit zu reisen.“ - Theodor

„Gedanken runterschreiben, denken, dass die wahnsinnig wichtig sind und dann ein paar Jahre später sein jüngeres ich auslachen.“ - Anna Sophie

„Ich finde ein Tagebuch ist eine gute Methode, um Erlebnisse festzuhalten. Als Kind habe ich es ab und zu gemacht, und wenn ich es mir heute durchlese, werde ich an all die alten Dinge zurückerinnert, die ich ohne das Tagebuch schon längst vergessen hätte.“ -Kim

„Für mich bedeutet Tagebuch seine Gefühle und Erlebnisse niederzuschreiben und reflektieren zu können.

Es war aber nie etwas was mir gefallen hat, ich habe es immer zu sehr mit Schule assoziiert.“ -Sina

„Ein klassisches Tagebuch ist was, was eher Mädchen machen. Ich stelle es mir aber als eine schöne Sache vor, ein Tagebuch zu führen.“ -Jan

„Heutzutage erfüllt die Cloud den Zweck des Tagebuchs.“-Daniel

„Früher habe ich öfter was in mein Tagebuch geschrieben, aber nie regelmäßig.

Heute lese ich mir die Texte gerne durch.“ -Sarah

Das Nutzen von Tagebüchern in der Psychologie Tagebücher sind nicht nur gut für Dokumentationszwecke, sondern werden auch immer wichtiger in der klinischen Psychologie und Psychatrie.

Verbessertes Gedächtnis:

Die Forschung deutet darauf hin, dass “Journaling” auch kognitive Ressourcen für andere wichtige mentale Prozesse freisetzen kann, indem es euch erlaubt, effektiver mit Stress umzugehen. Eine Studie mit Studierenden aus dem Jahr 2001 ergab etwa, dass das Schreiben über Gedanken und Gefühle in Bezug auf die Universität ihr Kurzzeitgedächtnis verbesserte. Dieser Effekt wurde sowohl unmittelbar nach dem Experiment als auch im darauffolgenden Semester mit höheren Durchschnittsnoten in Verbindung gebracht.

In den letzten Jahren hat es in der klinischen Psychologie und Psychiatrie zu einer wahren Flut von neuen Fragebogen, Ratingskalen und Tagebüchern geführt. Die meisten dieser Verfahren dienten zunächst der Prüfung wissenschaftlicher Fragestellungen und erst im Anschluss daran wurde ihr Nutzen für die verhaltenstherapeutische Praxis entdeckt.

Stressbewältigung:

Die Forschung legt nahe, dass das Führen von Tagebüchern ein hervorragendes Werkzeug zur Stressbewältigung ist. Tatsächlich zeigte eine Studie aus dem Jahr 2018, dass das emotionsorientierte “Journaling” sowohl mit verringertem psychischem Stress, als auch mit erhöhtem Wohlbefinden verbunden war.

Einmal auf das Schreiben reduziert, können Stressfaktoren oft besser verstanden und geschätzt werden. Danach kann man die Stressfaktoren distanzierter und objektiver betrachten. Dies kann dazu führen, dass bessere Stressmanagement- und Bewältigungstechniken entwickelt werden.

Tagebuch für positive Selbstveränderung

Tagebuch und Psychologie Ein Tagebuch dient nicht nur als Dokumentationszweck oder als reines niederschreiben von Gedanken und Erlebnissen, sondern kann auch positive Wirkungen für deine Psyche haben.

Gedanken ordnen

Regelmäßiges Tagebuch schreiben hilft beim Ordnen von Gefühlen, etc. Das kann einem helfen, durch die Fokussierung auf das eigene selbst, die eigene Selbstreflexion zu verbessern. Das "ich" ist dabei immer im Mittelpunkt.

Das Niederschreiben von Ängsten und Erlebnissen, hilft den Geist zu stärken. Es hat positive Auswirkungen auf langwierigen psychischen Erkrankungen und es kann auch depressive Symptome lindern.

Dementsprechend kann es als ergänzende Therapiehilfe herangezogen werden.

Tagebuch schreiben kann zur besseren Reflexion und Ordnung/Struktur der Gedanken helfen. Gedanken werden besser Verarbeitet und durch eine bessere Struktur, hat man eine bessere Kontrolle des Alltags.

Diese Methode kommt auch in der Therapie als Unterstützung zum Einsatz, da es hilft, Gedanken besser zu verstehen und besser zu ordnen zu können.

Der französische Anthropologe Andre LeroiGourhan bezeichnet das Schreiben als das dritte Gedächtnis des Menschen (neben der DNA und dem Gehirn.

Expressives Schreiben Das konzentrierte Niederschreiben von eigenen Sorgen und Ängsten wird in der Wissenschaft Expressives Schreiben genannt. Forscher haben erkannt, dass diese Schreiben einem beim Umgang mit Gefühlen und Alltagssituationen helfen kann.

Sorgen und Geheimnisse beanspruchen wichtige kognitive Ressourcen und Energie – Menschen die sich die ganze Zeit mit Sorgen beschäftigen, befinden sich in einer Art Multitasking Modus, denn es werden neben der eigentlichen Aufgabe, versucht Sorgen zu unterdrücken. Wenn diese besser aufgearbeitet werden, kann diese Energie für andere Dinge effektiver genutzt werden.

Das weniger Gehirnressourcen verwendet werden, kann durch neuronale Forschungen nachgewiesen werden.

Ein regelmäßiges schreiben eines Tragebuchs kann helfen, sich besser an Träume zu erinnern. Dadurch ist es nicht nur möglich, mehrere Träume zu haben, sondern Muster und wiederkehrenden Symbolen besser zu erkennen. Mit dem erkennen von Mustern und Symbolen ist es möglich Luzides Träumen zu erlernen.

Das gibt einem die Möglichkeit, im Traum zu erkennen, dass geträumt wird um diesen dann auch zu kontrollieren.

Einige Therapeuten benutzen Träume als stütze. Es gibt Theorien, dass es mit Träumen möglich sei, in das Unbewusste zu schauen oder das Träume auch als Verarbeitung der Erlebnisse untertags dienen.

Tagebuch und Psychologie

Tagebuch und das Träumen – Erlernen von Luzidem Träumen

Die Inspiration für das Tagebuch / Zitat:

“Das beste Tagebuch ist jeden Tag 3 Dinge aufzuschreiben die einem an diesem Tag gefallen haben. Wenn es was sehr dramatisches ist, kann man es auch dazu schreiben.”

Die Prototypen:

Konzept des Tagebuchs:

einfach schnell --> dadurch gibt es keine Ausrede mehr, dass man keine Zeit fürs Tagebuch schreiben hat

zu wenig Platz?

--> wenn 5 Wörter am Tag nicht genug sind, ist auf der unteren Hälfte der Seite extra Platz gelassen worden für mehr Gedanken/Emotionen/etc.

--> 5 Wörter am Tag aufzuschreiben, die den Tag zusammenfassen/beschreiben/etc., ist eine leichte Aufgabe

Selbstreflexion, Dokumentation der eigenen Gefühle/Erlebnisse/etc.

--> natürlich soll das Tagebuch auch für diese Dinge nützlich sein und nicht nur zeitsparend sein

Feedback & Reflexion Nachdem wir unsere ausgewählten Personen darum gebeten haben für einige Wochen in unser Tagebuch Format einzutragen, haben wir sie nach einem Feedback gefragt. Folgendes kam dabei raus:

„Die Idee klingt zwar verführerisch allerdings ist es relativ schwer 5 Worte zu finden die einen Tag beschreiben. An manchen Tagen sind es zu viele und an anderen einfach zu wenige. Da kann man es zwar erweitern, aber ich habe versucht jeden Tag in 5 Stichworten zu beschreiben, was nicht immer gelungen ist.

Ich führe einen relativ genauen und umfangreichen Kalender, daher was es für mich jetzt nicht so die Umstellung. Die Intention hinter dieser 5 Wort Idee ist klar die Vereinfachung, aber die richtigen Worte zu finden ist glaube ich nicht weniger (Zeit-)aufwendig als einfach ein paar Zeilen zu dem Tag zu verfassen.

Außerdem glaube ich dass ich mich in einem Jahr aufgrund dieser 5 Worte nur in den wenigsten Fällen erinnern kann was an dem Tag passiert ist, was für mich der Hintergedanke bei einem Tagebuch ist.“ -Debby

„Als eine Person, die noch nie Lust dazu hatte ein Tagebuch zu führen ist diese Variante mit nur 5 Wörtern (und wenn man will, mehr) nicht so erschreckend, wie das übliche Tagebuch-Format und ist leicht zum Umsetzen gewesen. Da ich aber nicht wirklich daran dachte, hatte ich die ersten Tage verschlafen und musste diese nachschreiben. Ab diesem Punkt hatte ich mir einen täglichen Wecker gestellt, der mich an das Ganze erinnert, so lief das dann gut. Um ehrlich zu sein, werde ich das aber nicht weiter umsetzen, da es für mich jetzt eher eine Art Aufgabe war, wie etwas das ich mir vorstellen konnte wirklich in meinem Tagesablauf einzubauen und ich daraus keinen Nutzen für mich ziehen kann.“

„Es war ein sehr interessantes Experiment. Durch die fünf Wörter denkt man den gesamten Tag nochmal durch. Im Tagebuch will man ja nur das wichtigste stehen haben und überlegt halt was einem am wichtigsten war. Und wenn man ein großartiges Erlebnis erlebt, dann muss man darüber nachdenken, wie man das in einem oder zwei Wörter abkürzt. Ich habe das ganz am Abend gemacht und durch das Überdenken ist es ein schöner Abschluss vom Tag“. - Theo

„Die Idee habe ich eigentlich nicht schlecht gefunden, weil man so wirklich gezwungen war sich mit dem, was einem beschäftigt, auseinanderzusetzten und sich dem auch bewusst zu werden.

Ich weiß nicht, ob es mir sonderlich viel gebracht hat, aber grundsätzlich hat es mir glaub ich schon gutgetan, mir jeden Tag für ein paar Minuten die Zeit zu nehmen, nachzudenken was mich so beschäftigt hat.

Auf Dauer glaub ich, dass diese Methode Tagebuch zu führen sehr alltagstauglich ist und zu einer besseren Selbstreflexion beitragen kann.“ – Anna Sophie

„Ich fand das eigentlich ein ziemlich cooles Projekt, weil man sich Zeit nimmt den Tag nochmal alles zu reflektieren und weil man den Tag bewusster lebt, wenn man sich Notizen zum Geschehen macht. Ich werde das auf jeden Fall in meinen zukünftigen Alltag einbauen Vielleicht nicht täglich aber zumindest regelmäßig.“ -Philippa

Digi Frigi Tanja, Lea, Anna-Katharina, Isabel & Julia

Digi Frigi DAS digitale Tagebuch

Julia Kern, Lea Kuch, Isabel Kührer, Tanja Rogner, Anna Katharina Tribus

Zu Beginn…

…haben wir mit 40 Füßen geredet und uns über Tagebücher unterhalten.

Wobei die meisten angegeben haben, dafür keine Motivation zu finden.

Und so kam es dazu, dass deren Füße uns Schritt für Schritt zu unserer Idee führten.

Inspiriert von Isabels Recherche zu digitalen Tagebüchern, fiel der erste Dominostein und die erste Version von Digi Frigi kam zur Welt.

Damals noch ohne Plan und ohne Namen begannen wir an unserem Konzept zu arbeiten.

Wir überprüften, ob unser Konzept auch auf wissenschaftlicher Basis Hand und Fuß hat, was uns zu folgenden Erkenntnissen gebracht hat: In klinischen psychologischen Interventionen führten digitale Tagebücher zu bemerkbarem Erfolg dahingehend, dass sich der Gemütszustand verbessert.

Döring, N., & Eichenberg, C. (2007). Klinisch-psychologische Interventionen mit Mobilmedien: Ein neues Praxis- und Forschungsfeld. Psychotherapeut, 52. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00278-006-0523-9

„Plan“

Unser Plan: Dies in unserem Projekt zu erreichen.

Unsere Kriterien für die App: Um den Hippocampus anzuregen und die Personen dazu zu verleiten Tagebuch zu schreiben, haben wir uns Frankenstein zum Vorbild genommen und unserer App Leben eingehaucht.

Was wir erschaffen haben ist nicht so wie bei Frankenstein ein schauriges Monster, sondern dein monstermäßig guter digitaler Freund.

Digi Frigi kümmert sich um deine Gefühle und Emotionen. Du kannst ihm mitteilen, ob du gerade glücklich oder traurig bist.

Digi Frigi freut sich, wenn du regelmäßig mit ihm über deine Gedanken redest.

Wenn du ihm längere Zeit nichts über deine Gefühle erzählst, wird er jedoch traurig.

Natürlich ist unsere App auch in jedem (imaginären) App Store zu finden.

Mit der Vollendung der App konnten wir uns auch schon unseren Usern zuwenden und deren Meinungen einholen.

Hier sind ein paar von unseren Usern.

Mit dem QR-Code kannst auch du ein glücklicher User werden:

Für die Weiterentwicklung der App haben wir die Eindrücke von unseren ersten Usern ausgewertet.

Nun zu diesen Auswertungen:

Die meisten Personen die teilgenommen haben, waren 18 – 25 beziehungsweise 46 – 55 Jahre alt.

Mehr als die Hälfte der Teilnehmer benutzten schon mal ein Tagebuch.

Da die Tagebücher, die bisher auf dem Markt waren, nicht so lebhaft waren wie Digi Frigi, gaben unsere User motivationslos Gründe an keines zu schreiben:

Was unsere User einerseits begeistert und andererseits verängstigt hat ist der Aspekt, dass die App mit ihrem Benutzer kommuniziert.

Unsere User waren sich einig, dass sie mit unserer App mehr Spaß am Schreiben finden und regelmäßiger schreiben würden.

Wir vermuten, dass dies der Grund ist, warum sie unserer App so gute Bewertungen gegeben haben.

Neben den netten Bewertungen haben wir auch tolles Feedback bekommen, das uns in unserer Entwicklung sehr weiter gebracht hat.

Wir sind dankbar, dass unsere User uns auf die Fehlformulierung unsererseits angesprochen haben. Digi Frigi ist nicht dazu gedacht echte Freunde zu ersetzen und wir werden dies bei der Verbesserung der App miteinbeziehen.

Dank Digi Frigis anpassungsfähigem Algorithmus gibt er immer individualisierte Antworten. Um Wiederholungen dieser Antworten zu vermeiden, werden wöchentlich neue Antworten programmiert.

Outcome & Verbesserungsvorschläge Voller Freude können wir sagen, dass unser Projekt, bei unseren Teilnehmer*innen im Großen und Ganzen gut angekommen ist.

Sie finden die interaktive App motivierend und lustig.

Einige fühlten sich davon etwas irritiert und wollten eine klare Trennung zwischen Mensch und Maschine.

Wenn wir die Möglichkeit hätten das Projekt nochmal zu starten, würden wir unsere Formulierungen eindeutiger wählen und die User schon zu Beginn darüber in Kenntnis setzen, dass unsere App keine echten Freunde ersetzen soll.

Das ist die Geschichte wie wir Digi Frigi auf die Beine gestellt haben.

Julia Kern, Lea Kuch, Isabel Kührer, Tanja Rogner, Anna Katharina Tribus

Call or Kill Grandma Anna, Carolina, Farrah, Laurenz, Lilly & Maximilian

Locat

Call or Killl Grandma

Stroke C 1, Joseph 84450 State

tion

Die Forschenden

Centre h Road e, Country

Idee Nicht selten schleppen wir Dinge hinter uns her, die wir schon vor Ewigkeiten hätten erledigen wollen. Oft greifen wir deshalb auf To-do-Listen zurück, um uns etweige Pläne ins Bewusstsein zu rufen. Diese sind allerdings nicht immer eindringlich genug.

Ziel Unser Medium setzt sich aus einer App zusammen, die, anders als die gewöhnloche To-do-Liste, inständig vor Augen führt, wie schnell man etwas verlieren kann, wenn man sich nicht ehr darum gekümmert hat. Durch emotionales Unterdrucksetzen und Aktievierung hoher Betroffenheit soll es dem/der NutzerIn zukünftig leichter fallen, den Anruf an seine Oma nicht länger aufzuschieben und diesen zeitnah in die Tat umzusetzen.

Aufbau

Average levels of blood glucose (A1C) The next table explains what your test numbers mean if you are not pregnant.

DIAGNOSIS

A1C (percent)

Normal

below 5.7

Prediabetes

5.7 to 6.4

Diabetes

6.5 or above

Aufbau

Schritt 1: Füge den Vornamen deiner Oma, ihre Telefonnummer und die Zeit, zu der sie angerufen werden soll, ein!

Aufbau

Schritt 2: Lade ein Bild deiner Oma hoch!

Aufbau

Schritt 3: Zu der Zeit, die du in der App angegeben hast, erscheint eine Erinnerung, deine Oma anzurufen.

Fragebogen

DIAGNOSIS

A1C (percent)

Normal

below 5.7

Prediabetes

5.7 to 6.4

Diabetes

6.5 or above

Fragebogen

Aufbau

Average levels of blood glucose (A1C) Ignorierst du die Erinnerung, beginnt ein Contdown abzulaufen und das Bild deiner DIAGNOSIS A1C (percent) Oma verschwindet immer Normal below 5.7 weiter.

Prediabetes

5.7 to 6.4

Diabetes

6.5 or above

Aufbau

Hast du deine Oma nach 4 Erinnerungen, immer noch nicht angerufen, ...

Inspirational Quotes

"Ich wollte meine Oma sowieso schon seit langem anrufen"

Average levels of blood glucose (A1C) The next table explains what your test numbers mean if you are not pregnant.

DIAGNOSIS

A1C (percent)

Normal

below 5.7

Prediabetes

5.7 to 6.4

Diabetes or above "Irgendwie6.5 sind die Erinnerungen

untergegangen"

voll

Inspirational Quotes

"Die Erinnerungen haben mich nicht wirklich motiviert"

"Die Erinnerung hat mich dazu gebracht den Anruf nicht aufzuschieben"

Ergebnisse Wir haben insgesamt 15 Freunde für unser Experiment befragt. Davon haben 10 Personen angerufen und 5 nicht. Als Grund, wieso sie nicht angerufen haben, haben sie angegeben, dass sie entweder keine Lust hatten oder auch nachdem sie mehrmals daran gedacht haben, sich nicht dazu überwinden konnten.

Interessant waren hier die Geschlechterunterschiede: Bei der Stichprobe, wo 10 Personen es geschafft haben anzurufen, waren drei Männer dabei und sieben Frauen.

Bei den 5 Personen, die nicht angerufen haben, war die Mehrheit Männer. Genauer gesagt, haben vier Männer nicht angerufen und eine Frau. Des Weiteren haben alle Nachmittags angerufen.

I d A r m u r g V e w U A s u m

Fazit

Im Großen und Ganzen kann gesagt werden, dass das Projekt erfolgreich war. Ein wichtiger Aspekt dieses Projekts war der, dass einem regelmäßiger bewusst wird, wie wenig Zeit wir mit unseren Großeltern bzw. allgemein mit unseren geliebten Menschen haben. Diese regelmäßige Bewusstmachung hat auch dazu geführt, dass viele unserer VersuchsteilnehmerInnen sich dazu entschlossen haben, dies selbstständig weiterzuführen.

Uns ist mit der Zeit klar geworden, dass die App ein schöner Gedanke war, jedoch nicht in so kurzer Zeit umsetzbar ist. Dennoch hat es uns als Gruppe gefreut zu sehen, dass mehrere unsere Idee weiterführen werden.

Abstract Initially, the idea was to create a kind of to-do list. Even here, we focused on the aspect of finding a way to get things done that are often put off. Over time, the focus on grandparents evolved, as the subject area would otherwise have been too broad.

Bachelors Thesis Anxiety Zhanna, Sarina, Dajana, Izem and Theo

“I gave it up, because not every day is that interesting” - Sarah

We asked 15 people “After I wake up I try to write down three things I am grateful for” - Vero

“Freiwillig bin ich nicht der Mensch der sich hinsetzt um seine Gedanken aufzuschreiben” - Klaus

“I only write when I am feeling sad, thats all” - Elif

“ I can not say anything about that” - Florentina

what is your experience with diaries?

“Persönlich manchmal ausprobiert, aber nie über längeren Zeitraum durchgezogen.”

- Peter

"When you’re young there is always something that bothers you and then you write it down because you just feel so lonely and it helps" - Irene

“…Ein paar Sachen aufgeschrieben zumindest die die mir wichtig waren die mir am tag passiert sind weil ich Schwierigkeiten hatte die so ein bisschen zu verarbeiten” - Luca

“Since 14 all I do with my diary is simple scheduling – Anastasia

results 7 males

8 females

15 respondents: all students

33% no diary

47% scheduling

20% feelings expression

The Interviews stage showed the need in lowering anxiety about the study process

66% of undergraduate students report experiencing overwhelming anxiety (American College Health Association [ACHA], 2019)

61.48 % of undergraduate students has average level of English language writing anxiety.

(Dar, M. F., Khan, I., 2015)

The intolerance of uncertainty and mindfulness significantly predict both anxiety and depression in college students.

(Nekic M, Mamic S. Intolerance of Uncertainty and Mindfulness as Determinants of Anxiety and Depression in Female Students. Behavioral Sciences. 2019; 9(12):135.)

CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) utilizes diaries to explore patients’ thoughts, attitudes, and beliefs as it determines how we feel and behave Patients report: “I have used CBT to examine my thoughts when I grow anxious or angry and seek to find constructive ways of working through my emotions and making sense of them.” “…it allows me to gain a sense of perspective” “So many of us have certain thoughts that bring with them automatic negative emotions and consequent physical reactions” “CBT can offer significant relief to those so suffering. And it can offer such relief in a short amount of time. Almost immediately.“

Theory behind CBT: Thought Diary CBT helps clients form connections between their feelings, thoughts, behaviors, and physical symptoms. (Anderson, Watson, & Davidson, 2008) While there are several distinct approaches within CBT, they all center on the following principles (Dobson, 2013): Cognitive activity affects behavior.

We can monitor and alter cognitive activity.

Cognitive change can lead to desired behavioral change.

Why use a thought diary?

A crucial aspect of CBT is giving clients homework, providing the opportunity to collect more information about the connection between thought and action.

One such activity is the completion of a thought diary. As therapists, we ask our clients to “step back from momentary experience and to observe and record it” (Dobson, 2013)

DEPRESSION Situation Sitting, watching the TV, but unable to concentrate due to thoughts about the break-up

Emotion

Thought

(Rate intensity 0-100%)

(Rate belief 0-100% where 100=the most upsetting thought)

Sad - 100%

1. I should have known something was not right - 80% 2. She was the one - 100% 3. I‘ll never feel like that again 100%

Generalized anxiety Situation Sitting, waiting for Joe to pick me up. He is now 30 minutes late.

Emotion

Thought

(Rate intensity 0-100%)

(Rate belief 0-100% where 100=the most upsetting thought)

Worried - 100%

1. Joe is never late - 80% 2. Something awful has happened - 90% 3. He is not answering my calls; he has gotten into a crash. - 100%

But for CBT strategies to step in and challenge our thinking, we need first to identify unhelpful and invalid thoughts.

Thought diaries provide a practical and easy way to capture our negative thought processes.

THOUGHT RECORD

1. Situation

2. Moods

3. Automatic Thoughts (Images)

4. Evidence that Supports the Hot Thought

5. Evidence that Does Not Support the Hot Thought

6. Alternative/Balanced Thoughts

7. Rate Mood Now

- many of the same - a racist, misogynistic USA elected a racist, misogynistic white male as president!

- Persons of color and

*Election of Donald Trump as President of the United States

- Anger 90% - Betrayal 70%

- Frustration 80%

- Uncertainty 75%

marginalized communities are going to be singled out and victimized.

- White supremacy is resurgent in America!

- I, and my allies, must come back strong against his supporters in a #resistance movement.

• No compromise!

• Fuck white cis heteronormative America!

• Fight the patriarchy!

- The president has been accused of sexual assault and recorded talking about it.

- Trump has made plenty of inflammatory remarks about race on Twitter and elsewhere.

- His policies made it easier to deport immigrants and harder for them to enter the country.

- The “alt Right”strongly supports Trump.

- Almost half the country didn't vote for Trump.

- Plenty of Republicans like his low taxes and economics but not his divisive rhetoric.

- The hardcore proTrump “culture warriors” are a relatively small portion of the electorate.

- Trump, sooner or later, will be gone.

“This too shall pass.”

Americans who voted for an “outsider” and for change voted for Obama (a black man) in 2012 then voted for Trump in 2016.

- Hillary Clinton, representing the “Establishment” and her husband Bill, were deeply unpopular.

Trump was the better choice, comparatively.

- Many like Trump's Republican economic policies, but don't like the man himself personally or support his divisive rhetoric.

- Trump notwithstanding, America has made tremendous strides in the last fifty years in its race relations and social tolerance.

- Feel 35% better

Once you carefully examine what exactly is happening through your Thought Record, you can move to an Action Plan to improve the situation and feel better.

ACTION PLAN Goal: Work to undermine the policies and influence of President Donald Trump when he is in office, and help some other candidates win during the presidential election of 2020.

Actions to Take

Time to Begin

Possible Problems

Strategies to Overcome

Progress

Vote!

During any election.

Too lazy to show up and vote.

Become apathetic or lose hope.

Not being lazy. Get out there and vote.

Keep my eye on the prize!

TBD

Use whatever influence I have to counter Trump, his supporters, and their policies.

March in protests, letters to the editor, social media, personal conversations, etc.

Do it now!

Don't be so intemperate and aggressive in my language and/or actions that I alienate possible allies. Try not to become more a part of the problem than the solution in the Age of Trump.

Assume positive TBD intent from others until shown otherwise. Don't allow an asshole like Trump to turn me into an asshole.

Keep my emotions under control.

Now and indefinitely.

Exhaustion.

Burnout. Becoming embittered.

Allowing Trump constantly to live rent free in my head. Failure to keep a sense of perspective.

When I feel TBD overwhelmed and/or exhausted by anger at President Trump and his supporters, take breaks from the news and social media.

Become upset that not everybody believes the way I do. Not appreciate that much of public events are beyond my control or that some people are just unreasonable and beyond persuading.

Get out of my own way with regards to ultimate political outcomes and mental health.

Appreciate that the world is larger than myself and my concerns of the moment: “This too shall pass.”

Make sure to Always. remember that, despite my best efforts, things might not go the way I want them to go.

TBD

this is Anastasia

this is Theo

In our street interviews she said

He said he is a B4 student so he is just now starting his bachelor’s thesis but is overwhelmed and cannot keep up with university work while making time to go sailing with friends.

“Since 14 all I do with my diary is simple scheduling”

our project Goal - to lower levels of academic writing anxiety in SFU Psychology students We decided to undertake 4 steps 1. Research how to lower anxiety levels among students in SFU 2. Design the Bachelor Thesis Roadmap ( BT Roadmap) to help students to overcome bachelor thesis writing anxiety 3. Choose an appropriate assessment tool for measuring the efficiency of intervention (Roadmap) 4. Test the intervention efficiency by measuring the intolerance of uncertainty assessment tool before and after the intervention ( filling the Roadmap)

The steps of the Bachelor Thesis process can be divided into 8 steps, we decided to focus and test out the second.

1. understand what it is 2. find a research topic 3. craft a research proposal 4. introduction chapter 5. review existing research 6. design your own research 7. report on your findings 8. draw your conclusions

Our tool in completing the Bachelor thesis is in the form of a booklet.

Each page asks a different question with enough space for students to explore their thoughts.

The questions are based on the criteria of the bachelor thesis as well as advice we have received from professors.

Project in detail Step 1 - FINDING THE REASONS OF ANXIETY - Questioning students about the study processes that involve academic writing that bother them most.

- The majority of B2 and B4 students answered that Bachelor thesis writing makes them uncertain mostly.

Step 2 - DESIGNING THE INTERVENTION TOOL - We made a research on the best tips and templates for writing the thesis and the best diary tools issued by psychologists to keep clients on the track and to overcome uncertainty (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) We came up with the 8 steps Plan Roadmap 1. Find a research topic 2. Make the hypothesis 3. Craft the research proposal to SFU 4. Write the Introduction Chapter 5. Review existing research 6. Design your own research 7. Report on your findings 8. Draw your conclusions Each of 8 steps is designed for a 9-week sprint period.

We designed the first part of the Roadmap to test the pilot version, that included 6 questions aimed to define the topic of interest students could research.

Step 3 – THE ASSESSMENT TOOL - We have decided to implement the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (IUS) questionnaire and made the online survey for SFU students.

- We have measured the respondents’ level of Uncertainty We have asked those with the high level of uncertainty to try our BT Roadmap (Part I) - Then we measured the level of uncertainty in them again with the same assessment tool

QR code to the IUS survey that we sent out to participants - by clicking you may view the questions and even fill it out yourself!

If you don’t… these are the questions:

Step 4 - FILLING IN THE BT ROADMAP and MEASURING RESULTS We asked our participants to fill in the BT Roadmap ( Part 1) but in a shorter period of time due to the deadlines we had.

"...Interest in behavioural aspect of economics" "No clinical psychology (...well maybe?)"

"It is important for me to be closely guided as I tend to procrastinate frequently"

- We questioned them about their experiences and how they were satisfied after the accomplishment of BT Roadmap - We measured the level of uncertainty with Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (IUS) once again and got the promising results.

We presented our results in Media Theory class

Extensions - Developing the next 6 steps of the Roadmap to the bachelor’s thesis - Including bigger sample sizes to test our tool

contact Dajana: 62102850@mail.sfu.ac.at Zhanna: 62102846@mail.sfu.ac.at Theo: 12037330@mail.sfu.ac.at Izem: 12035552@mail.sfu.ac.at Sarina: 62102858@mail.sfu.ac.at

Dear Diary Alexia, Kalina, Skye and Yana

Interviews in total

We started our project by asking individuals whether they own a diary.

Our results indicated that out of the 15 people that were interviewed a total of 0 people wrote diaries.

The participants explained that they connected the word "diary" with their childhood. They saw it as a place a young girl writes down her secret crush.

PSYCHOLOGY STUDENTS We decided to interview two psychology students along with strangers we encountered on the street. We had anticipated that the psychology students would write in a daily diary in order to maintain their mental health. However, the psychology students admitted to us that they also had only used a diary during childhood.

Interviews in total

ONE OUT OF FIFTEEN Towards the end of our interviews we had found one woman out of 15 people who writes in a daily planner. The woman stated that she uses the planner to organize her university course work. She does not, however, use it to track mental health aspects.

PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS

Diaries are important tools in psychology.

They can provide relief and comfort when dealing with everyday issues, as well as more elaborate hardships.

Pressure relief, gaining insight that would otherwise remain concealed, and therapeutic aid are only some of the many proven possible benefits of keeping diaries.

TRAUMA-SPECIFIC DIARIES Diaries are also often used in Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatment. Here too, they help address and work through a particular trauma, create a more conclusive narrative of a trauma that has perhaps been repressed, eliminate resultant stress from avoidant behaviors, and detect unhealthy patterns.

While they are not enough to treat mental disorders as severe as persistent trauma-based disorders, they can be used both independently and with the guidance of a therapist in order to help create self-care and self-reflection habits that can ultimately speed up a difficult recovery process.

JOURNAL THERAPY Journal therapy was created by Ira Progoff in 1966 as a reflective writing tool for deeper understanding of one’s problems. The main goal is to reach personal and spiritual growth.

It focuses on the importance of intention, or socalled "purpose" and views this aspect of diarywriting as crucial in improving one's spiritual, emotional, mental and even physical well-being through this process.

Perhaps slightly unlike traditional diary-writing, psychology focuses more on how the individual perceives an experience, how it impact them, and how they feel compelled to react to it, rather than narrating an event from an objective observer's standpoint. This tactic is aimed to further aid in self-reflection and gaining profound insights rather simply.

“There’s simply no better way to learn about your thought processes than to write them down.”

- Barbara Markway

One of the crucial aspects of diaries is that it is a way to remember one's dreams. According to Sigmund Freud, dreams portray an individual’s (unfulfilled) desires. This theory stems from Freud's famous dream diaries, which can help track the activity of one's subconscious and, subsequently better understand it.

The Starting Point

Our first inspiration for our project came from the female student who said that she used a planner to organize her university courses. She had explained that she writes a to-do list in order to stay focused. Furthermore, she writes down the due dates of the assignments and which ones are the most important. She said that having started this process has made her a more focused and determined student.

This information allowed us to create our own idea using the key concept that was introduced to us by this student. The key concept, in this case, is the ability to organize course work daily. Since we decided to make a daily diary this aspect matched our idea perfectly.

The Starting Point

Since we are psychology students. we decided that we wanted to work on a diary that allows individuals to improve their mental well being. In order to do this we decided to have a brain storming session about aspects we would like to include.

We all agreed that we wanted to have one question of the diary be devoted to positive thinking. Our ideas included writing down what made the individual happy that day, naming three good choices that were made during the day, and illustrating what characteristics the participant likes about themselves that day.

At this point we were not sure which idea we wanted to choose but we were sure that we wanted to include this positive aspect. This chosen idea would essentially be combined with a university planning section in order for it to be useful for our target audience.

WHY THIS CONCEPT? Our concept was brought forth by the idea that implementing big changes efficiently cannot be done overnight. It was this idea that pushed us to create a short, compact and accessible diary that would only take up minutes of one's day, but would still fulfill the general aims of diaries, while also providing the practical aspect of daily planning and organizational aid.

"Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together."

- Vincent van Gogh

WHAT WAS THE GOAL? Through this, we aimed to supply a starting point to people who were not quite ready to commit to a more elaborate diary yet. By managing to complete it every day, participants would gain a sense of accomplishment and be motivated to continue, ultimately making diary-writing into a habit. At the same time, the short and simple nature of the diary would make it easy to complete, and it therefore would not feel like a chore or an obligation, also aiding in further motivation.

HOW WE IMPLEMENTED OUR IDEA The daily diary we designed was meant to be short, simple to fill out and universally accessible. Simultaneously, we wanted it to take on the role of both a diary and a daily planner, in order for it to be useful to a wider range of individuals.

To test our idea, we designed a diary based on our criteria. The final product covered five categories: something I enjoyed today, something I would like to improve tomorrow, a to-do list, a rating for today on a scale from 1-5, and 3 things I learned today, as well as a slot for the date and day of the week. We created three different layouts with different color schemes that the study's participants could choose from. The diary was one page long, which meant it would all fit on one's phone screen at the same time - or, if participants chose to print out the diary, on a single sheet of paper - which was imperative for our concept. In the end, we wanted the diary to be as accessible and effortless as possible.

TESTING

We decided to focus our study on a group of students going to SFU. We had a total of 15 students, 9 of which female, 6 of which male.

Participants were from 11 different nationalities, and were aged between 18 27. years.

The original trial period was supposed to be two weeks, however in the process of making the diary, the trial period was extended to three weeks.

This gave the participants the chance to form a habit of writing a diary.

Testing Process

At the start of the trial, the diary, together with instructions, was distributed via email to all of the participants. The contents of the diary were supposed to be confidential, that is why we didn’t ask the participants to send it back to us. This gave them the freedom and opportunity to use the electronic version of it, or to print it as a physical copy.

Every second day we sent reminder emails to the participants, and at the end of each week, a short questionnaire to track their progress was sent out, and participants were asked to send it back with their answers.

At the end ot the third week of the trial, a follow-up questionnaire was sent out, and participants were asked to send it back filled out.

Weekly Check-Ins Results

Question: “How often did you manage to fill out the diary?

After one week: 95% said “every day”, 5% said “most days” After two weeks: 87% said “every day”, 6% said “most days”, 6% said “rarely” After three weeks: 87% said “every day” 13% said “rarely”

When we asked our participants to elaborate, we observed the creation of two “different groups”. The first group was formed by the participants who filled out the dairy every day.

Their answers were explaining the positive impacts the diary has had on their everyday life.

The second group was formed by the participants, who filled out the diary more rarely.

They explained that they couldn’t see a significant impact from the diary, so they “often forgot” to fill it out.

Final Results The results from the final follow-up questionnaire gave us the opportunity to make a conclusion about our diary and the trial process.

More than 80% of the participants in the trial rated the experience of keeping a diary as “excellent”, and only 20% rated it as “poor”. The results from the questionnaire show that the most enjoyable and beneficial parts of the diary are the following sections: “Something I would like to improve”, “To do list”, “Daily achievements”. The participants described the diary as “short”and “really positive”, and they also mentioned that it didn’t take a lot of time to fill it out.

The individuals, who managed to fill out the diary on a daily basis, said that they could see themselves continuing with the diary process.

However, those who were not so active during the trial, reported that they wouldn’t continue the process, as they didn’t see any significant changes.

WHAT WE LEARNED FROM THIS EXPERIENCE Additionally to our test results, which were supplied by the participants via questionnaires, we found that our initial assumptions were correct. The diary's short and simple format served as the main motivation to regularly fill it out. This form of small commitment helped integrate the daily planner as a form of self-care into people's routines more organically. At the same time, the fact that they were able to choose the visual aspect of the diary, the electronic or physical format, and the time of day they filled it out provided an element of freedom, which further solidified the diary as an option, not an obligation. The choice to make it a daily diary also turned out to be beneficial because through regular reinforcements by achieving a small task every day, participants found themselves more eager to repeat the routine the next day.

WHAT WE COULD HAVE DONE BETTER While the given questions were useful for some, other participants would have preferred a more open format.

The perfect balance between daily planner and diary, we found, is therefore rather difficult to find. The trial period of three weeks also proved too short to persuade those who had no initial interest in a diary to commit to one, and the motivation of participants who had no desire to complete the task dwindled over time.

Our group consisted of four students in the International Psychology Programme at Sigmund Freud University, and was brought together by Martin Foessleitner's Media Theory class.

The project unfolded between March and June of 2022.

Where are You now?

Konrad, Emily May and Anne

Where are you now?

Articulating Your Personal Narrative…

By Emily May Thompson, Konrad Goscik, Anne Winandy

What is a Diary?

When asking people on the street what they thought a diary was, we got an interesting answer…

„A diary is ME!“ - Minsky It`s a reflection of who people believe themselves to be.

By writing a diary, people articulate the story they tell themselves about the kind of person they think they are

We wanted to design a tool with a foundation in psychological principles

As psychology students…

To encourage self improvement

ON YOUR TERMS

Our design With this in mind, we designed a diary wherein…

1. You articulate your ideal self as well as what the opposite of that might look like 2. You come up with things you could do that will bring you closer to your ideal 3. You also come up with things you could do that will bring you closer to the opposite of your ideal 4. You determine where you are in relation to your ideal and its opposite This way, no one is in the dark.

You are held accountable to your own beliefs and are encouraged to act accordingly.

Instructions

2 weeks Describe your ideal self and its opposite Write 5-10 things that move you closer and further away from your ideal. After a few days reflect on yourself by marking on a scale where you are with regards to your ideal and write down a couple things that moved you towards and/or away from it.

A Preview

Results & Insights Positive effects were only present when people successfully completed the diary and interacted with it regularly

People experienced more negative emotion as a result of becoming aware of exactly where they were in relation to their ideal. However, over time this encouraged them to change their behaviour for the better.

People who set less practical expectations experienced more negative emotion as a result of not moving towards their ideal

Increased self awareness

Americans

Europeans

Dangers of leaving your ideals inarticulate

DIGESTIVE PROBLEMS HEART DISEASE HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE ANXIETY MEMORY IMPAIRMENT STROKE

MUSCLE TENSION

HEADACHES DEPRESSION

confusion and uncertainty Besides the stress that unpredictable situations put on our body, being unsure about your ideals makes it significantly more difficult to achieve anything.

Since you only have vague conceptions that guide you forward, you won‘t hold yourself accountable for progress and likely won‘t even notice when you are thrown off the path that should be guiding you toward your ideal.

Ideals and values Finding out what one‘s values and ideals are can prove to be a challenging task, however it has a strong impact on a person‘s self-image and selfesteem.

Once an ideal is set, we become responsible for maintaining ourselves on a path that leads towards it.

The more action we take that reflects our values, the less anxiety we experience when attempting to improve out self-awareness.

Benefits Our diary has proven to encourage long-term incremental change in behaviour.

Systematically determining where you are in relation to your ideal encourages productive behavior that will gradually contribute to the betterment of your lifeincreasing positive emotion and removing uncertainty

Conclusion Articulating what values are important to us can trigger new behaviours, guide your focus and help sustain a feeling of momentum in life.

Setting goals is a process that changes over time.

We found our diary encouraged selfreflection paired with an opportunity to fulfill personally relevant goals which made the writers‘ experience more enjoyable.

Even though it may be easier to imagine what it is that we don‘t want in life, setting a clear image of who we want to be has a strong impact on successfully setting meaningful goals.

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