How a hobby can boost researchers’ productivity and creativity

Rosén, Julia

doi:10.1038/d41586-018-05449-7

Cited by 10 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…But even in these cases, the application of some of the rules presented (e.g., Rules 1–5 and 9) can alleviate many of the problems associated with unhealthy working habits. It is also important to remember that, in the end, our work is only part of our life, and that achieving a proper life–work balance will make us healthier, happier, and more productive in the long term [34, 35]. Reasons for this include a lower stress load, a higher capacity to concentrate on important tasks, and boosted energy, satisfaction, and motivation levels [33, 34].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We must also keep in mind the large differences that exist between different countries and cultures about what constitutes a “normal” working week, the length of annual holidays, and the pressures induced by the requirements to getting a job or being promoted. But even in these cases, it is important to remember that our working conditions are regulated by law and our contracts, and that working for long hours is not a sine qua non condition for being successful as a scientist (something that is intimately linked to our personal life [35]), as multiple examples from around the world illustrate [6, 24, 34].…”

Section: Rule 7: Respect Working Hours Public Holidays and Vacationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ten simple rules towards healthier research labs

Maestre

2019

PLoS Comput Biol

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The negative effects of extremely competitive academic and research environments on the performance and health of researchers are well known and common worldwide. The prevalence of these effects, particularly among early career researchers, calls for a more humane and people-centered way of working within research labs. Although there is growing concern about the urgent need for a better life–work balance when doing science, there are not many examples about how this could be achieved in practice. In this article, I introduce 10 simple rules to make the working environment of research labs more nurturing, collaborative, and people-centered. These rules are directed towards existing and future principal investigators (PIs) but will be of interest to anyone working in a research lab and/or dealing with how to improve working conditions for scientists.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Rule 7: Respect Working Hours Public Holidays and Vacationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ten simple rules towards healthier research labs

Maestre

2019

PLoS Comput Biol

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“…Discover activities you can do with your partner, family, or friends-such as hiking, dancing, or taking cooking classes. Listen to your favorite music at work to foster concentration, reduce stress and anxiety, and stimulate creativity [57]. While your work is important, you will be much happier if you schedule some social time into your week.…”

Section: Rule 6: Make Your Health a Prioritymentioning

confidence: 99%

Ten simple rules to improve academic work–life balance

Bartlett

Arslan

Bankston³

et al. 2021

PLoS Comput Biol

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The ability to strike a perceived sense of balance between work and life represents a challenge for many in academic and research sectors around the world. Before major shifts in the nature of academic work occurred, academia was historically seen as a rewarding and comparatively low-stress working environment [1]. Academics today need to manage many tasks during a workweek. The current academic working environment often prioritizes productivity over well-being, with researchers working long days, on weekends, on and off campus, and largely alone, potentially on tasks that may not be impactful. Academics report less time for research due to increasing administrative burden and teaching loads [1][2][3]. This is further strained by competition for job and funding opportunities [4,5], leading to many researchers spending significant time on applications, which takes away time from other duties such as performing research and mentorship [1,2]. The current hypercompetitive culture is particularly impactful on early career researchers (ECRs) employed on short-term contracts and is a major driver behind the unsustainable working hours reported in research labs around the world, increases in burnout, and decline in satisfaction with work-life balance [6][7][8][9][10]. ECRs may also find themselves constrained by the culture and management style of their laboratory and principal investigator (PI) [11][12]. Work-life balance can be defined as an individual's appraisal of how well they manage work-and nonwork-related obligations in ways that the individual is satisfied with both, while simultaneously maintaining their health and well-being [13]. Increasing hours at work can conflict with obligations outside of work, including but not limited to family care commitments, time with friends, time for self-care, and volunteering and community work. The increasing prevalence of technology that allows work to be out of the office can also exacerbate this conflict [14,15].The academic system's focus on publications and securing grant funding and academic positions instead of training, mentoring, and mental health has skewed the system negatively against prioritizing "The whole scientist" [5,16]. Research focused on the higher education sector has revealed that poor work-life balance can result in lower productivity and impact, stifled academic entrepreneurship, lower career satisfaction and success, lower organizational commitment, intention to leave academia, greater levels of burnout, fatigue and decreased social interactions, and poor physical and mental health, which has become increasingly prevalent among graduate students [1,[17][18][19][20][21][22]. For instance, a recent international survey of over 2,000 university staff views on work-life balance found that many academics feel stressed and underpaid and struggle to fit in time for personal relationships and family around their ever-growing

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“…First, they may relieve stress, which primes the brain for more divergent thinking and idea generation, falling under the category of type 1 thinking processes. 4 For instance, George de Mestral was a Swiss engineer who grew up with a fascination in technology and received formal training from prestigious institutions. When he was not at work, he spent his time hunting in the mountains and, as the story goes, he was pestered by the burs that stuck to his clothes.…”

Section: Observation From the Individual’s Perspectivementioning

confidence: 99%