NUI Study to inform future Mental Health Practice

Study seeks participants aged 18-25 years old to examine common experiences of feeling disconnected or detached from one's sense of self or their surroundings.

The School of Psychology at NUI Galway is conducting a research study on people who experience feelings of being disconnected or detached from themselves and their surroundings.  Adults aged 18-25 years old are invited to participate in the study, with findings hoping to better inform professionals working within the mental health service.

Recent research in mental health has identified that it can be common for people to experience unwanted thoughts and feelings of being more or less whole, or that the world is less real to them than at other times. This has been found to be a common phenomenon among the general population, but for some people it may cause them some distress.

These experiences can be influenced by stress and fatigue, with most people not admitting to experiencing feelings of disconnect and detachment, for fear of being perceived as different or strange. International studies have found that people are more willing to report these experiences in surveys rather than disclose it to a doctor.

The study is being carried out by Aoife Ó Laoide, a Psychologist in Clinical Training at the School of Psychology in NUI Galway, under the academic supervision of Dr Jonathan Egan, Deputy Director of the University’s Doctorate Programme in Psychological Science. Ms Ó Laoide is interested in examining this phenomenon and understanding how psychological factors, such as childhood experiences, current stress, anxiety, and mood might interact with these common experiences of feeling disconnected from yourself or your surroundings.

Miss Ó Laoide said: “We are seeking people for the study who have ever felt ‘unreal’ or in a ‘dream-like’ state. People who experience a feeling of detachment or disconnection from themselves and their surroundings.  We want to investigate this relatively common phenomenon that no one wants to admit to, in order to explore how it may impact on an individual and their overall psychological well-being, with the hope of informing future clinical practice.”

For those aged 18-25 years old who wish to participate in the study please visit the online survey link at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/feelingunreal 

For further information contact Aoife Ó Laoide at a.olaoide1@nuigalway.

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NUIG Study on effects of music on ageing brain - Participants required

NUI Galway study is seeking participants aged 60-85 years to join an experimental study on the effects of listening to music

An ongoing ageing research project at NUI Galway is looking for additional participants to take part in the study. This study is part of a larger ongoing project at the University, which commenced in 2013, exploring the functions and effects of listening to music on the ageing brain with both younger and older adults.

The project is now seeking participants aged 60-85 years to join an experimental study on the effects of listening to music. Participants will spend two hours in a lab carrying out a variety of verbal and numerical tasks while listening to music and having their brain waves measured by electroencephalography (EEG).

Jenny Groarke, a musician and PhD student in the School of Psychology at NUI Galway, said: “We will examine whether listening to music improves emotional, social or cognitive functioning, which we hope can be used to benefit older adults in the future.”

An important factor in the current research is the role of choice in music listening. Almost all previous studies on the effects of music have been carried out with adolescents or young adults, and most researchers have chosen classical music for participants to listen to. The researchers at NUI Galway have concluded the first part of this study with 18-30 year-olds and noted some interesting age differences in music choices.

Participants are asked to choose music for a couple of different scenarios, while socialising or working for example. Whatever the situation, it seems Ed Sheeran is a popular choice, with 25% of the young adults in the study choosing at least one of his hits. While younger people are tending to listen to their favourite music regardless of the situation, older people are demonstrating greater variety and sophistication when choosing music for different contexts.

The study will run until Christmas and those interested in participating must complete the questionnaire of adaptive music listening functions, and sign up for the experiment at www.sgiz.mobi/s3/AFML

Alternatively, participants can request a paper version of the questionnaire by contacting Jenny Groarke on jenny.groarke@gmail.com and for more information on participating in the research visit www.adaptivefunctionsofmusic.com

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