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Schumann F, Smolka M, Dienes Z, Lübbert A, Lukas W, Rees MG, Fucci E, van Vugt M. Beyond kindness: a proposal for the flourishing of science and scientists alike. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230728. [PMID: 38026042 PMCID: PMC10663797 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230728] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023]
Abstract
We argue that many of the crises currently afflicting science can be associated with a present failure of science to sufficiently embody its own values. Here, we propose a response beyond mere crisis resolution based on the observation that an ethical framework of flourishing derived from the Buddhist tradition aligns surprisingly well with the values of science itself. This alignment, we argue, suggests a recasting of science from a competitively managed activity of knowledge production to a collaboratively organized moral practice that puts kindness and sharing at its core. We end by examining how Flourishing Science could be embodied in academic practice, from individual to organizational levels, and how that could help to arrive at a flourishing of scientists and science alike.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frank Schumann
- Laboratoire des systèmes perceptifs, Département d’études cognitives, École normale supérieure, PSL University, CNRS, 75005 Paris, France
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, 75012 Paris, France
- Université de Paris, CNRS, Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition Center, 75006 Paris, France
| | - Mareike Smolka
- Knowledge, Technology and Innovation, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Human Technology Center, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Zoltan Dienes
- School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton, UK
| | | | - Wolfgang Lukas
- Institute for Globally Distributed Open Research and Education (IGDORE), Graz, Austria
| | | | - Enrico Fucci
- Institute for Globally Distributed Open Research and Education (IGDORE), Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Marieke van Vugt
- Bernoulli Institute of Mathematics, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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Rillig MC. Ten simple rules for how you can help make your lab a better place as a graduate student or postdoc. PLoS Comput Biol 2022; 18:e1010673. [PMID: 36454735 PMCID: PMC9714729 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010673] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Lab teams are dynamic entities in which a lot depends on the principal investigator (PI) and the framework set by them. However, within these parameters, there is a lot of room for lab members to contribute to a happy and productive environment. Often doctoral students or postdocs (or other staff) may underestimate how much of a difference they can really make. Here are 10 simple rules on how to help make a lab a better place; these rules are mostly aimed at building better lab communities, where people help each other, look out for each other, and take an interest in critically questioning the status quo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias C. Rillig
- Freie Universität Berlin, Institut für Biologie, Berlin, Germany
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), Berlin, Germany
- * E-mail:
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Schad A, Layton RL, Ragland D, Cook JG. Mental health in medical and biomedical doctoral students during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and racial protests. eLife 2022; 11:e69960. [PMID: 36066348 PMCID: PMC9448322 DOI: 10.7554/elife.69960] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2021] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Concerns about the mental health of students, trainees and staff at universities and medical schools have been growing for many years. Recently, these have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and a period of heightened reckoning and protests about systemic racism in the United States in 2020. To better understand the mental health of medical students and biomedical doctoral students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill during this challenging period, we performed a cross-sectional study (n=957) using institutional annual survey data on measures of depression, anxiety, hazardous alcohol use, problems related to substance use, and suicidal ideation. These data were collected in 2019 and 2020, and were analyzed by type of training program, race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and survey year. Results indicated significant differences for rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation, with biomedical doctoral students showing greater incidence than medical students, and historically excluded students (e.g., people of color, women, LGBQ+ trainees) showing greater incidence compared to their peers. Of note, mental health remained poor for biomedical doctoral students in 2020 and declined for those belonging to historically excluded populations. The high rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation reported suggest that training environments need to be improved and support for mental health increased.
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Affiliation(s)
- Allison Schad
- Office of Medical Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of MedicineChapel HillUnited States
| | - Rebekah L Layton
- Office of Medical Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of MedicineChapel HillUnited States
| | - Debra Ragland
- Office of Medical Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of MedicineChapel HillUnited States
| | - Jeanette Gowen Cook
- Office of Medical Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of MedicineChapel HillUnited States
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of MedicineChapel HillUnited States
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Limas JC, Corcoran LC, Baker AN, Cartaya AE, Ayres ZJ. The Impact of Research Culture on Mental Health & Diversity in STEM. Chemistry 2022; 28:e202102957. [PMID: 35075707 DOI: 10.1002/chem.202102957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
The onset of COVID-19, coupled with the finer lens placed on systemic racial disparities within our society, has resulted in increased discussions around mental health. Despite this, mental health struggles in research are still often viewed as individual weaknesses and not the result of a larger dysfunctional research culture. Mental health interventions in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) academic community often focus on what individuals can do to improve their mental health instead of focusing on improving the research environment. In this paper, we present four aspects of research that may heavily impact mental health based on our experiences as research scientists: bullying and harassment; precarity of contracts; diversity, inclusion, and accessibility; and the competitive research landscape. Based on these aspects, we propose systemic changes that institutions must adopt to ensure their research culture is supportive and allows everyone to thrive.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juanita C Limas
- Department of Pharmacology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | | | | | - Ana E Cartaya
- Department of Surgery, Center for Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery, Department of Pharmacology, McAllister Heart Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
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Rodrigues RS. Seizing balance and success during your PhD experience. Eur J Neurosci 2021; 54:5907-5914. [PMID: 34346127 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Doing a PhD is a long, yet rewarding, expedition. Amid that journey, several decisions must be made to position yourself and stand out within a tough system as well as to align your personal goals and interests with those of supervisors, teams, and institutions. Many challenges will arise throughout that PhD journey and a degree of uneasiness and uncertainty will sometimes linger. In this opinion article, I put forth a personal and honest view of how to seize balance and success during your PhD experience. I reflect on issues such as failure, planning, work-life balance, and personal drive. All in all, I highlight difficulties shared among all PhD students while discussing personalized strategies and coping mechanisms to deal with adversity. Taken together, this is a timely piece that aims to raise awareness about the problems affecting most PhD students and, in parallel, to inspire and empower fellow PhD students. Notably, this is also a call to the research community to be sensitive to these struggles and to foster practices that enable PhD students to live to their full potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui S Rodrigues
- Instituto de Farmacologia e Neurociências, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.,Instituto de Medicina Molecular João Lobo Antunes, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
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Bartlett MJ, Arslan FN, Bankston A, Sarabipour S. Ten simple rules to improve academic work-life balance. PLoS Comput Biol 2021; 17:e1009124. [PMID: 34264932 PMCID: PMC8282063 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1009124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - Feyza Nur Arslan
- Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Adriana Bankston
- Future of Research, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Sarvenaz Sarabipour
- Institute for Computational Medicine and Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
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Sarabipour S, Hainer SJ, Arslan FN, de Winde CM, Furlong E, Bielczyk N, Jadavji NM, Shah AP, Davla S. Building and sustaining mentor interactions as a mentee. FEBS J 2021; 289:1374-1384. [PMID: 33818917 DOI: 10.1111/febs.15823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2021] [Accepted: 03/15/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Mentorship is experience and/or knowledge-based guidance. Mentors support, sponsor and advocate for mentees. Having one or more mentors when you seek advice can significantly influence and improve your research endeavours, well-being and career development. Positive mentee-mentor relationships are vital for maintaining work-life balance and success in careers. Early-career researchers (ECRs), in particular, can benefit from mentorship to navigate challenges in academic and nonacademic life and careers. Yet, strategies for selecting mentors and maintaining interactions with them are often underdiscussed within research environments. In this Words of Advice, we provide recommendations for ECRs to seek and manage mentorship interactions. Our article draws from our experiences as ECRs and published work, to provide suggestions for mentees to proactively promote beneficial mentorship interactions. The recommended practices highlight the importance of identifying mentorship needs, planning and selecting multiple and diverse mentors, setting goals, and maintaining constructive, and mutually beneficial working relationships with mentors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarvenaz Sarabipour
- Institute for Computational Medicine, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Sarah J Hainer
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Feyza Nur Arslan
- Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Charlotte M de Winde
- MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology, University College London, London, UK.,Department of Molecular Cell Biology and Immunology, Amsterdam UMC Locatie VUmc, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Emily Furlong
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Natalia Bielczyk
- Welcome Solutions, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.,Stichting Solaris Onderzoek en Ontwikkeling, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Nafisa M Jadavji
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ, USA.,Department of Neuroscience, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada
| | - Aparna P Shah
- The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Sejal Davla
- Advanced Science Research Center, City University of New York, NY, USA
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