With the advent of COVID-19, our reliance on technology has increased dramatically. Today, many of us still work from home, and some of us still rely on technology to a degree that we never did before. And although the net benefits of using these devices certainly outweighs the costs, there are downsides to being overly reliant on technology that should be acknowledged. In today’s e-bulletin we’re going to look at a few different scenarios in an attempt to explore how technology can help but also hinder a person’s mental health, as well as look at some possible solutions for mitigating these challenges.
Scenario 1: You’ve been given the choice to either work from home, or work from an office. You choose to work from home. What are the costs vs benefits of that decision?
Benefit(s): Working from home means that you save time on your commute, allowing you to spend more time on your other interests or relaxing. Removing the commute from your day can also potentially save you money on fuel or transit. At home, you can make your own comfortable environment to do your best work in. At home you might spend less time chatting with colleagues, potentially increasing your productivity and focus.
Cost(s): In order to be truly productive at home, a great deal of discipline is needed, and not everyone possess the discipline necessary to make that work. Working from home can also lead to us feeling like we aren’t fully connected with the rest of the outside world. At-home workers might also feel like they are constantly forced to learn new technologies independently, and that could lead to a feeling of being behind the times, especially if you are someone who is suddenly thrust into a world of new technology that you hadn’t experienced before.
Solution(s): Set rules and goals for yourself and follow through. Reach out to colleagues for extra accountability and take meetings in the office whenever possible in order to feel like you are part of the group. Use a task management app such as Asana or a to-do app such as Microsoft To-Do to stay on track throughout your day.
Scenario 2: Your favorite band is performing live, but is also offering a free live stream of the show. You decide to watch the live stream. What’s the benefit vs cost of that decision?
Benefit(s): Watching the show online means you can adjust the volume as needed, pause (depending on the streaming service), and generally experience the same music from the comfort of your own home. And if you’re a person with physical disabilities, getting into a venue can be exceedingly challenging, and you may choose to enjoy the music from a more comfortable location instead.
Cost(s): A concert is meant to be a social event, and attending a live concert at home only gives you part of the overall experience. This can lead to poor social development and lessen the amount of face-to-face interactions that you have, which can then impact your self-esteem and overall social skills. Watching from home also probably means that you will be distracted by other things in your environment.
Solution(s): Try and find a comfortable balance between safety and social time. If you choose the live stream, and you’re craving some extra social interaction, think about setting up a video call with friends via Zoom or maybe even a gaming session on Discord.
Scenario 3: You are a student in high school, and because of the current COVID-19 restrictions, you and your peers are currently learning from home. Let’s look at some of the costs vs benefits of learning from home.
Benefit(s): If you’re a student with disabilities, you might benefit greatly from the pace of at-home learning, as well as from the delivery of the content itself. Online lectures tend to feature more visual cues, videos, and other supporting resources that student with unique learning styles would benefit from. Online learning also has a “replayability” factor that might be critical for many students. And the ability to go back to a recorded lecture as many times as needed is something that could be beneficial to any student, regardless of their learning style.
Cost(s): You build important social skills in school, and many of those social skills might be lacking in students who spend their years learning from home. Students who are learning from home also have access to their phone, gaming consoles, laptops, and many more distractions, leading to a decreased focus on the subject matter being taught. You might feel especially lonely and un-seen, and in the case of those who require extra support from their instructor, it’s easy to feel like you are being left behind.
Solution(s): Reach out to friends whenever possible. If extra-curricular activities are possible at the time, take advantage of them. When it comes to schoolwork, set rules and goals for yourself, and follow through. Reach out to fellow students for extra accountability. Consider using a habit tracking app such as Habitica, or to-do app such as Microsoft To-Do. Reach out to fellow students for extra accountability. Be as social as possible. If physical interaction is impossible, set up a zoom-based study date or gaming session with friends.
These are just a few of the possible scenarios (and solutions) possible when it comes to balancing technology and mental health. Do you know any strategies for balancing technology and mental health that haven’t been mentioned here? Comment below!
Sources: How Technology is Causing Anxiety (Bentley University 2015)
