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Handbook of Research Methods for Studying Daily Life
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... We direct the reader elsewhere for (a) reporting guidelines for ESM studies (e.g., Liao et al., 2016;Stone & Shiffman, 2002;Trull & Ebner-Priemer, 2020), (b) reviews of methods and practices for ESM research (e.g., Bolger et al., 2003;Trull & Ebner-Priemer, 2020), (c) discussions on current and future applications of ESM (e.g., Mestdagh & Dejonckheere, 2021;Myin-Germeys et al., 2009, 2018, (d) analytical considerations (e.g., Hamaker & Wichers, 2017), (e) insights into conducting ESM studies in specific psychological subdisciplines (e.g., affective sciences: Kuppens et al., 2022; personality psychology: Kaurin et al., 2023), and (f) in-depth handbooks on how to conduct ESM research (e.g., Bolger & Laurenceau, 2013;Conner & Mehl, 2012;Hektner et al., 2007;Myin-Germeys & Kuppens, 2021). Instead, we provide a brief overview of the following 10 topics that we believe are essential for the quality of ESM design and implementation, discuss current challenges, and-if availablehighlight potential solutions: ...
... Designs with retrospective questions are therefore sometimes referred to as "ecological retrospective assessment" (Leertouwer et al., 2021). Likewise, recall bias may increase when the construct of interest is assessed over a time span during which it is likely to fluctuate meaningfully (e.g., appetite level during the past day; Conner & Mehl, 2012;Kuppens et al., 2022;Shiffman et al., 2008). To address these issues, ESM researchers can increase the sampling frequency of fixed or (semi)random assessments, implement periods of measurement bursts into these assessment schemes (for more details on this strategy, see Ram et al., 2014), or use eventcontingent schemes. ...
The experience-sampling method (ESM) captures psychological experiences over time and in everyday contexts, thereby offering exciting potential for collecting more temporally fine-grained and ecologically valid data for psychological research. Given that rapid methodological developments make it increasingly difficult for novice ESM researchers to be well informed about standards of ESM research and to identify resources that can serve as useful starting points, we here provide a primer on 10 essential design and implementation considerations for ESM studies. Specifically, we (a) compare ESM with cross-sectional, panel, and cohort approaches and discuss considerations regarding (b) item content and phrasing; (c) choosing and formulating response options; (d) timescale (sampling scheme, sampling frequency, survey length, and study duration); (e) change properties and stationarity; (f) power and effect sizes; (g) missingness, attrition, and compliance; (h) data assessment and administration; (i) reliability; and (j) replicability and generalizability. For all 10 topics, we discuss challenges and—if available—potential solutions and provide literature that can serve as starting points for more in-depth readings. We also share access to a living, web-based resources library with a more extensive catalogue of literature to facilitate further learning about the design and implementation of ESM. Finally, we list topics that although beyond the scope of our article, can be relevant for the success of ESM studies. Taken together, our article highlights the most essential design and implementation considerations for ESM studies, aids the identification of relevant in-depth readings, and can thereby support the quality of future ESM studies.
... Following the study protocol : (1) only participants with a compliance rate (% of notifications responded to) of 40% or above were included in the data set; and (2) after cleaning the data, only participants with at least 20% of notifications remaining were included in the data set (Mehl & Conner, 2012). All participants met these criteria. ...
... All participants met these criteria. Data were screened for invalid observations (Mehl & Conner, 2012), removing duplications and ESQs with more than 50% of items completed in under 1 second, indicative of 'skipping through'. After cleaning, the mean compliance rate was 76% (range = 34% to 100%). ...
Background: Reducing anxiety and depression of adolescents is a global health priority. Personal and social resources (e.g., hobbies, socializing) may reduce distress. Yet, there is insufficient understanding of how adolescents use such resources to reduce distress.
Objective: To identify resources that reduced distress in the everyday lives of adolescents, and whether resource use differed according to symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Methods: The experience sampling method was used, a longitudinal method requiring participants to report on context and mood at randomly selected moments across a week. 5558 reports were contributed by 151 adolescents, including 90 with symptoms of anxiety and/or depression. The study was conducted in the poorest neighbourhoods of Bogotá, Buenos Aires and Lima.
Results: Multi-level modelling indicated that using resources was significantly associated with less nervousness and sadness. Adolescents with symptoms were less likely to use some resources (e.g., sport). Cross-level interactions showed the efficacy of resources differed according to severity of symptomatology. For adolescents with symptoms, some resources (e.g., peer support) improved mood, while others (e.g., music listening) did not.
Discussion: Personal and social resources are important for reducing distress in the everyday life of adolescents, giving insight for potential interventions to help mitigate symptoms of anxiety and depression before escalation. Further research could assess the quality of experiences (e.g., appraisal) to deepen understanding of how engagement promotes resilience.
Conclusions: Care must be taken when recommending resource use, since some forms (e.g., music listening) may be unhelpful to adolescents with symptoms of anxiety and depression.
... The second is time-contingent EMA, also referred to as interval-contingent, or fixed-time based, gathers data at predefined intervals, providing a continuous stream for tracking patterns over time. The purpose of time-contingent EMA is to reduce the risk of recall bias in participant reporting (Mehl & Conner, 2012). It is also possible to deliver EMA studies as a combination of event and timecontingent designs (Moskowitz & Young, 2006). ...
Mobile health applications (mHealth apps) and wearable devices have transformed physical activity research through the introduction of advanced research methods. These methods enable more accurate, context-sensitive and real-time evaluations, such as ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) and experience sampling methods. Further, these technological advancements facilitate the delivery of personalized physical activity interventions, employing techniques such as microrandomization trials and just-in-time adaptive interventions (JITAIs). However, developing these apps often requires extensive programming skills and resources. To address these challenges, “no-code” mHealth app design tools have recently been developed. This study aims to (a) identify and review current evidence of “no-code” mHealth physical activity research tools and (b) compare the features of these tools that can be utilized to implement innovative methodological approaches (i.e., EMA, JITAI, microrandomization trials). We conducted a scoping review and an internet search to identify current “no-code” mHealth app development tools, followed by a systematic comparison of their features. We found that current “no-code” mHealth app design tools that can be used for conducting EMA, JITAI, and microrandomization methods include Avicenna, Expiwell, LifeData, mEMA, Metricwire, movisensXS, mPath, MyCap, Pathverse, PiLR Health, and Teamscope. While these 11 tools offer diverse features, no single tool encompasses them all, necessitating selection based on study needs. Additional considerations include data privacy and security when selecting no-code app building tools. Overall, this study aims to inform researchers of the commercially available “no-code” mHealth research app development tools and their features.
... Over the four intervention phases, 1,406 diary entries were collected. The goal of the diary was to collect information on various variables in real time in the participants' natural environment (Mehl et al., 2014). In the diary, caregivers reported first on the state (i.e., depressive, apathetic, aggressive, irritated, restless) in which the person with dementia was immediately before the MM application. ...
Introduction
In dementia care, the integration of innovative interventions is essential to enhancing the wellbeing and quality of life of people with dementia. Among these interventions, the Music Mirror intervention has emerged as a promising tool to provide personalized audio-biographical cues aimed at soothing, motivating, and engaging people with dementia. This study examined the effects of a Music Mirror intervention on the (a) wellbeing, emotions, and behavioral and psychological symptoms of 155 individuals with dementia, (b) perceived burden, relationship quality, and gains of their informal/formal caregivers, and (c) momentary closeness, wellbeing and stress of caregivers.
Methods
This four-year study employed a quasi-experimental waiting-control group design, utilizing before-after measurements in Swiss hospitals, care homes, and domestic homes. For four 6-week intervention phases, Music Mirrors, i.e., brief written resources of acoustic material, associated with practical activities of daily life, were applied at least twice a week by the caregivers during critical moments such as staff handover. Repeated measures' analysis of variance and other tests were used to analyze the data.
Results
Individuals with dementia had a higher wellbeing after the Music Mirror use across different care situations. While the Music Mirrors were played, individuals with dementia showed more positive than negative emotions at each measurement occasion, but emotion scores did not significantly change over time. After the MM use, caregivers felt better, closer to the person with dementia, and less stressed. Caregivers also reported significant gains at the end of the intervention. However, there were no significant changes in the frequency of the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia, care-related burden and relationship quality over time, regardless of the treatment condition.
Discussion
By incorporating personalized audio-biographical cues into their care routines, the wellbeing of people with dementia was improved as well as it had positive momentary effects on their caregivers. The Music Mirror intervention addresses the preferences and needs of people with dementia and helps build bonds between care-recipients and caregivers. Therefore, Music Mirrors can be seen as a highly adaptive and individualized instrument to improve momentary wellbeing of people with dementia in various care situations during daily life.
... Even if retrospective survey-based methods are repeated over time, these approaches risk mischaracterizing the nuances of short-term and immediate experiences, which are often difficult to capture and subject to recall bias. Intensive longitudinal data (ILD) methods are a set of approaches used to capture dynamic processes directly, reduce recall bias, and increase ecological validity (Mehl & Conner, 2012). ILD methods and terminology encompass experience sampling, ecological momentary assessment (EMA), ambulatory assessment, and daily diaries (Shiffman et al., 2008;Trull & Ebner-Priemer, 2014), among others. ...
Research on real-world patterns of substance use increasingly involves intensive longitudinal data (ILD) collection, requiring long assessment windows. The present study extends limited prior research examining event- and person-level influences on compliance and response consistency by investigating how these behaviors are sustained over time in an ILD study of alcohol and cannabis co-use in college students. Participants (n = 316) completed two 28-day bursts of ILD comprising five daily surveys, which included a morning survey of prior-day drinking. We used linear mixed effects models in a multilevel interrupted time series framework to evaluate the associations of time and measurement burst with (a) noncompliance (count of missed surveys) and (b) response consistency (difference between same-day report of drinking and morning report of prior-day drinking). We observed that time was positively associated with noncompliance, with no discontinuity associated with measurement burst. The slope of time was more positive in the second burst. Neither time nor measurement burst were significantly associated with consistent reporting. However, survey nonresponse and consistency of responding appeared to be impacted by the same-day use of substances. Overall, compliance decreased while consistency was stable across the duration of a lengthy ILD protocol. Shorter assessment windows or adaptive prompting strategies may improve overall study compliance. Further work examining daily burden and context is needed to inform future ILD design.
Individuals prefer interpersonal distance; that is approaching beyond a certain amount of distance is perceived as unpleasant. The extensive research in this area spans from cross‐cultural psychology to applied sciences such as architecture. Although there is a large corpus of research on inter‐individual and cross‐cultural differences in preferred interpersonal distances, these preferences have—to our knowledge—yet to be analysed intra‐individually across time. Therefore, we conducted a pre‐registered experience‐sampling study in the field ( N = 81 participants, 2 weeks, k = 3716 daily assessments) by assessing preferred distances and whether they were contingent on the number of people in close proximity (i.e., crowding). Furthermore, we used a Bluetooth scan to nonintrusively measure the number of people within 2 m. We found substantial variance in the preferred interpersonal distances, not only between participants but also within participants, suggesting large situation‐dependent state‐like aspects of this construct. Second, in addition to the expected age and gender effects (older and female participants preferred larger distances), the more people there were within 2 m (Bluetooth was the best measure for this), the smaller the preferred interpersonal distance to strangers. This observation indicates the potential presence of either an adaptation process (i.e., adapting to the situation) or a selection process (i.e., demonstrating a greater tolerance for crowding due to the self‐selection of the situation). It seems probable that research on the state aspects of preferred interpersonal distances will retain their significance in the future, given the ongoing process of urbanisation in numerous countries worldwide.
Father love is recognized as an important factor in personal development. While previous research has extensively examined the adverse effects of father-love absence on subjective well-being, it is important to note that these studies often treated subjective well-being as a singular, overarching construct, potentially limiting validity and comprehensiveness compared to a bi-factor model. Consequently, this study aimed to establish a bi-factor model of subjective well-being and investigate its association with father-love absence, considering the mediating role of hope within the theoretical framework of resilience. The study employed a weekly diary method to explore the dynamic adverse effects of father-love absence on weekly subjective well-being, highlighting hope’s role in mitigating these negative impacts. Utilizing a weekly survey method with 470 participants over seven consecutive weeks, multilevel regression modeling revealed that father-love absence significantly and negatively impacts subjective well-being. Further, multilevel mediation modeling demonstrated the mediating role of hope within the resilience framework. This research has significant theoretical and practical implications for enhancing adolescent well-being through increased father involvement in parenting.
Introduction
Germany and the European Union have experienced successive waves of refugees since 2014, resulting in over 1.6 million arrivals, including families with young children. These vulnerable populations often face xenophobia, discrimination, substandard living conditions and limited healthcare access, contributing to a high prevalence of mental health problems (MHP). Our primary goal is to proactively address MHP in refugee parents and prevent its potential impact on their children through effective early interventions. Using a low-threshold, primary care-based approach, we aim to enhance parenting skills and address parental psychopathology, creating a supportive environment for parents and children.
Methods and analysis
In this randomised controlled trial, 188 refugee parents of 6-year-old children or younger who meet the clinical cut-off on the MHP scale will participate. They are randomly assigned to either the experimental psychotherapeutic intervention, delivered by general practitioners (10-week Improve intervention), or treatment as usual, in a ratio of 1:1. The randomisation will be masked only for outcome assessors. Improve includes face-to-face sessions with general practitioners, an interactive online parenting programme (Triple P Online) and regular protocol-based telephone calls by psychologists. Primary outcomes will assess the intervention’s effects on parental and child MHP and parenting skills, with secondary outcomes including psychosocial and physical health indicators. Outcomes will be assessed at pre, post and at 3-month and 6-month follow-ups. The study is scheduled to run from February 2019 to July 2025.
Ethics and dissemination
The project Improve-MH (application number 602) was approved by the local ethics committee of Ruhr-University of Bochum and is being conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. The study is also conducted in full accordance with the German Data Protection Act, and the Good Clinical Practice guideline (GCP) and is sensitive to specific ethical considerations. Results will be disseminated at scientific conferences, published in peer-reviewed journals and provided to consumers of healthcare.
Trial registration number
The trial was prospectively registered at the German Clinical Trials Register (Deutsches Register Klinischer Studien, DRKS-ID: DRKS00019072) on 16 March 2020.
Most of the scientific research on alcohol consumption behavior in humans is laboratory-based, as reflected by the ratio of laboratory vs. real-life contributions to this handbook. Studies in daily life, although having a long history in addiction research (Shiffman et al., Ann Behav Med 16:203–209, 1994), are in the minority. This is surprising, given that patients with substance use disorders are suffering in daily life and not in the laboratory setting. In other words, drinking patterns and symptoms of alcohol use disorder evolve not in the lab but in daily life, where patients show difficulties in limiting their alcohol intake accompanied with all kinds of related problems. The ultimate goal of all interventions, independent of being tailored toward restricted drinking or abstinence, is again an altered behavior in real life. Translated to practice, patients’ behavior in the lab may not translate to daily life, often showing minimal ecological validity. Therefore, we have to question to which degree lab-based research findings translate into daily life. Fortunately, the current digital revolution provided us with more and more tools, enabling us to monitor, analyze, and change behavior in human everyday life. Our chapter does not intend to give a comprehensive overview of the daily life research on alcohol consumption over the last few decades as others do (Morgenstern et al., Alcohol Res Curr Rev 36:109, 2014; Piasecki, Alcohol Clin Exp Res 43:564–577, 2019; Shiffman, Psychol Asses 21:486–497, 2009; Votaw and Witkiewitz, Clin Psychol Sci 9:535–562, 2021; Wray et al., Alcohol Res Curr Rev 36:19–27, 2014). Instead, we aim at the following: first, to highlight the key advantages of ecological momentary assessment to motivate scientists to add daily life research components to their laboratory research and, second, to provide some guidance on how to begin with daily life research.
Research Applications: Perspectives from the Different Fields 27 Emotion Research Authors
- Iv Part
Part IV: Research Applications: Perspectives from the Different Fields
27. Emotion Research
Authors: Adam A. Augustine and Randy J. Larsen (Washington University St. Louis, USA)