The Corona Syndrome – Why Fear is more Dangerous than the Virus

Dr. Thomas Hardtmuth

There is a wave of anxiety going round the world. It is destructive and has a sickening effect on the one hand but it also provides a great learning opportunity and offers a chance for civilization to take a new step in its development. A systems-based scientific approach indicates that although pandemics require an understanding of viruses, even more important is a deeper understanding of the immune system. The one-dimensional focus on viruses, infection mechanisms and worst case scenarios, deflects attention away from the critical effects that psychological and social influences have on the human immune system.

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Screen-time influences children's mental imagery performance

Sebastian P. Suggate | Philipp Martzog

Mental imagery is a foundational human faculty that depends on active image construction and sensorimotor experiences. However, children now spend a significant proportion of their day engaged with screen-media, which (a) provide them with ready-made mental images, and (b) constitute a sensory narrowing whereby input is typically focused on the visual and auditory modalities. Accordingly, we test the idea that screen-time influences the development of children's mental imagery with a focus on mental image generation and inspection from the visual and haptic domains. In a longitudinal cross-lagged panel design, children (n = 266) aged between 3 and 9 years were tested at two points in time, 10 months apart. Measures of screen-time and mental imagery were employed, alongside a host of control variables including working memory, vocabulary, demographics, device ownership, and age of exposure to screen-media. Findings indicate a statistically significant path from screen-time at time 1 to mental imagery at time 2, above and beyond the influence of the control variables. These unique findings are discussed in terms of the influence of screentime on mental imagery.

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