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Zerr K, Seiler JPH, Rumpel S, Tüscher O. Validation of a German version of the Boredom Proneness Scale and the Multidimensional State Boredom Scale. Sci Rep 2024; 14:2905. [PMID: 38316871 PMCID: PMC10844236 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-53236-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2023] [Accepted: 01/30/2024] [Indexed: 02/07/2024] Open
Abstract
The scientific interest in boredom is growing over the past decades. Boredom has not only been linked to symptoms of psychopathology, but also shows a remarkable effect on individual behavior under healthy conditions. Current characterizations of boredom in humans mostly rely on self-report assessments which proved to faithfully reflect boredom in a vast range of experimental environments. Two of the most commonly used and prominent self-report scales in order to assess boredom are the Multidimensional State Boredom Scale (MSBS) and the Boredom Proneness Scale (BPS). Here, we present the German translations of both questionnaires and their validation. We obtained and analyzed psychometric data from more than 800 healthy individuals. We find that the German MSBS and BPS show vast congruence with their originals in respect to item statistics, internal reliability and validity. In particular, we find remarkable associations of state boredom and trait boredom with indicators of mental burden. Testing the factor structure of both questionnaires, we find supporting evidence for a 5-factor model of the MSBS, whereas the BPS in line with its original shows an irregular, inconsistent factor structure. Thus, we validate the German versions of MSBS and BPS and set a starting point for further studies of boredom in German-speaking collectives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Zerr
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Untere Zahlbacher Straße 8, 55131, Mainz, Germany
| | - Johannes P-H Seiler
- Institute of Physiology, Focus Program Translational Neurosciences, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 19, 55131, Mainz, Germany.
| | - Simon Rumpel
- Institute of Physiology, Focus Program Translational Neurosciences, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 19, 55131, Mainz, Germany
| | - Oliver Tüscher
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Untere Zahlbacher Straße 8, 55131, Mainz, Germany
- Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research, Wallstraße 7, 55122, Mainz, Germany
- Institute of Molecular Biology, Ackermannweg 4, 55128, Mainz, Germany
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Chao T, Todman M, Foltin RW, Evans SM, Bedi G. Laboratory method to induce state boredom increases impulsive choice in people who use cocaine and controls. THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE 2024; 50:42-53. [PMID: 37921613 DOI: 10.1080/00952990.2023.2248544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2023] [Accepted: 08/12/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023]
Abstract
Background: Impulsive choice is associated with both cocaine use and relapse. Little is known about the influence of transient states on impulsive choice in people who use cocaine (PWUC).Objective: This study investigated the direct effects of induced boredom on impulsive choice (i.e., temporal discounting) in PWUC relative to well-matched community controls.Methods: Forty-one PWUC (≥1× cocaine use in past 3 months; 7 females) and 38 demographically matched controls (5 females) underwent two experimental conditions in counterbalanced order. Temporal discounting was assessed immediately after a standardized boredom induction task (peg-turning) and a self-selected video watched for the same duration (non-boredom). Subjective mood state and perceived task characteristics were assessed at baseline, during experimental manipulations, and after the choice task.Results: PWUC and controls were well matched on sex, age, and socioeconomic status. Groups were also similar in reported use of drugs other than cocaine, except for recent cigarette and alcohol use (PWUC > controls). As expected, peg-turning increased boredom in the sample overall, with higher boredom reported during peg-turning than the video (p < .001, η2p = .20). Participants overall exhibited greater impulsive choice after boredom than non-boredom (p = .028, η2p = .07), with no preferential effects in PWUC (p > .05, BF01 = 2.9).Conclusion: Experimentally induced boredom increased state impulsivity irrespective of cocaine use status - in PWUC and carefully matched controls - suggesting a broad link between boredom and impulsive choice. This is the first study to show that transient boredom directly increases impulsive choice. Data support a viable laboratory method to further parse the effects of boredom on impulsive choice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Chao
- Institute of Mental Health, Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - McWelling Todman
- Department of Psychology, The New School for Social Research, New York, NY, USA
| | - Richard W Foltin
- Division on Substance Use Disorders, New York State Psychiatric Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Suzette M Evans
- Division on Substance Use Disorders, New York State Psychiatric Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Gillinder Bedi
- Centre for Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne and Substance Use Research Group, Melbourne, Orygen, Australia
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Xie J, Xu X, Zhang Y, Tan Y, Wu D, Shi M, Huang H. The effect of short-form video addiction on undergraduates' academic procrastination: a moderated mediation model. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1298361. [PMID: 38162977 PMCID: PMC10756502 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1298361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Short-form videos have become one of the most popular ways for people to entertain and relax. However, the intense interest in short-form videos has given rise to short-video addiction, which poses risks to both physical and mental health of individuals. Undergraduates are one of the important users for short-form videos, and the influence of short-form video addiction calls for more attention. This study aimed to investigate the association between short-form video addiction and academic procrastination among undergraduates, exploring the role of executive functions (i.e., attentional control) and personality traits (i.e., boredom proneness) in the association. Methods Using stratified random cluster sampling method, the data of 1,047 college students were used in the study. All variables were measured by empirical instruments, and all instruments were highly reliable. Mediation and moderation analysis was conducted using Model 4 and 7 in PROCESS macro powered by SPSS. Results Results revealed that short-form video addiction not only directly impacted academic procrastination but also placed indirect effect on academic procrastination through attentional control. Furthermore, the mediating effect of attentional control was contingent upon individuals' boredom proneness. Higher levels of boredom proneness weakened the impact of short-form video addiction on attentional control. Conclusion The findings expand our knowledge of the negative effects of short-form video addiction and the underlying mechanisms, providing implications for mitigating undergraduates' academic procrastination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin Xie
- Education Research Institute, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), Wuhan, China
| | - Xinyu Xu
- School of Mechanical Engineering and Electric Information, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), Wuhan, China
| | - Yamei Zhang
- School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China
| | - Yuxin Tan
- Education Research Institute, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), Wuhan, China
| | - Dazhou Wu
- School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Mingjian Shi
- Political Officer Education Department, Dalian Naval Academy, Dalian, China
| | - Hai Huang
- Education Research Institute, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), Wuhan, China
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Seiler JPH, Rumpel S. Modeling fashion as an emergent collective behavior of bored individuals. Sci Rep 2023; 13:20480. [PMID: 37993553 PMCID: PMC10665449 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-47749-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 11/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Boredom is an aversive mental state that is typically evoked by monotony and drives individuals to seek novel information. Despite this effect on individual behavior, the consequences of boredom for collective behavior remain elusive. Here, we introduce an agent-based model of collective fashion behavior in which simplified agents interact randomly and repeatedly choose alternatives from a circular space of color variants. Agents are endowed with a memory of past experiences and a boredom parameter, promoting avoidance of monotony. Simulating collective color trends with this model captures aspects of real trends observed in fashion magazines. We manipulate the two parameters and observe that the boredom parameter is essential for perpetuating fashion dynamics in our model. Furthermore, highly bored agents lead future population trends, when acting coherently or being highly popular. Taken together, our study illustrates that highly bored individuals can guide collective dynamics of a population to continuously explore different variants of behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes P-H Seiler
- Institute of Physiology, Focus Program Translational Neurosciences, University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 19, 55131, Mainz, Germany.
| | - Simon Rumpel
- Institute of Physiology, Focus Program Translational Neurosciences, University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 19, 55131, Mainz, Germany.
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Seiler JPH, Zerr K, Rumpel S, Tüscher O. High state boredom vastly affects psychiatric inpatients and predicts their treatment duration. Transl Psychiatry 2023; 13:350. [PMID: 37973905 PMCID: PMC10654381 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-023-02650-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Revised: 10/23/2023] [Accepted: 11/02/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Boredom is a ubiquitous, aversive human experience typically elicited by low information and monotony. Boredom can occur either as a transient mental state that prompts individuals to adapt their behavior to avoid monotony or as a temporally stable trait, describing a chronic susceptibility to feeling bored. Increased trait boredom was found to correlate with various psychopathologies and indicators of mental burden. However, the role of state boredom in psychopathological conditions and its implications for psychiatric treatment remain elusive. Here, we address this issue by investigating state boredom and trait boredom in a cohort of psychiatric inpatients and a healthy control cohort. We find that in both groups, state boredom, even more than trait boredom, shows remarkable associations with psychopathology. In the inpatient group, state boredom is implicated broadly in multiple mental disorders and shows an association with treatment in closed psychiatric wards. Furthermore, through statistical modeling, we find that high-state boredom during inpatient therapy is predictive of a longer therapy duration. Thus, we show that state boredom constitutes an indicator of mild and severe psychopathology in different mental disorders, affecting the outcome of psychiatric patients. Potential therapeutic interventions are discussed, aiming to enhance information flow in the brain in order to alleviate boredom in clinical settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes P-H Seiler
- Institute of Physiology, Focus Program Translational Neurosciences, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 19, 55131, Mainz, Germany.
| | - Katharina Zerr
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Untere Zahlbacher Straße 8, 55131, Mainz, Germany
- Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research, Wallstraße 7, 55122, Mainz, Germany
| | - Simon Rumpel
- Institute of Physiology, Focus Program Translational Neurosciences, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 19, 55131, Mainz, Germany
| | - Oliver Tüscher
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Untere Zahlbacher Straße 8, 55131, Mainz, Germany
- Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research, Wallstraße 7, 55122, Mainz, Germany
- Institute of Molecular Biology, Ackermannweg 4, 55128, Mainz, Germany
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Özdilek Ü. The Role of Thermodynamic and Informational Entropy in Improving Real Estate Valuation Methods. ENTROPY (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 25:907. [PMID: 37372251 DOI: 10.3390/e25060907] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2023] [Revised: 06/04/2023] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023]
Abstract
Price, Cost and Income (PCI) are distinct economic indicators intrinsically linked to the values they denote. These observables take center stage in the multi-criteria decision-making process that enables economic agents to convey subjective utilities of market-exchanged commodities objectively. The valuation of these commodities heavily relies on PCI-based empirical observables and their supported methodologies. This valuation measure's accuracy is critical, as it influences subsequent decisions within the market chain. However, measurement errors often arise due to inherent uncertainties in the value state, impacting economic agents' wealth, particularly when trading significant commodities such as real estate properties. This paper addresses this issue by incorporating entropy measurements into real estate valuation. This mathematical technique adjusts and integrates triadic PCI estimates, improving the final stage of appraisal systems where definitive value decisions are crucial. Employing entropy within the appraisal system can also aid market agents in devising informed production/trading strategies for optimal returns. The results from our practical demonstration indicate promising implications. The entropy's integration with PCI estimates significantly improved the value measurement's precision and reduced economic decision-making errors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ünsal Özdilek
- Business School, Department of Strategy, Social and Environmental Responsibility, University of Quebec, Montreal, QC H3C 3P8, Canada
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