EMPIRICAL STUDY OF THE INFLUENCE OF GADGETS ON THE MENTAL STATE OF ADOLESCENTS

Purpose. The article is devoted to the actual problem of studying gadget addiction and its impact on the mental state of adolescents. Purpose of the article is an empirical study of the features of smartphone use among adolescents, and to find out its impact on the mental state of adolescents. Methods. To achieve this purpose a number of methods and techniques were used: theoretical – analysis, synthesis, generalization of scientific literature on the problem of research; empirical – questionnaires (author’s questionnaire “The role of mobile phone in my life”); testing (“The Smartphone Addiction Scale, Short Version forAdolescents (SAS-SV)” method; “The Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory” method of determining the level of anxiety, adapted by Y.L.Khanin; “Well-being, activity, mood” method by P.Miroshnikov (“SAN technique”); statistical methods – correlation analysis (K. Pearson Criterion).Results. The study of influence of gadget addiction (on the example of a smartphone) involved 60 adolescents, whose average age is 13,7 years, who are all regular users of smartphones. It was stated that most teenagers use a mobile phone not only for its main purpose, but in most cases to use its additional features – for taking pictures and videos, as an opportunity to use Internet, for games and entertainment. Adolescents spend three to five hours a day using smartphones, losing self-control, an obsessive desire to constantly check notifications (vigilance behaviour), and the appearance of somatic problems take place. Correlation analysis allowed to establish positive correlations at the level of statistical significance between the indicators of smartphone addiction and the level of activity of adolescents, state and trait anxiety; negative correlations are obtained between the indicators of smartphone addiction and the level of well-being and mood.Conclusions. It was found that use of modern gadgets, namely smartphones has a negative impact on the well-being, the mood of adolescents in the direction of their deterioration when it is impossible to use the device for a long time or vice versa when increasing the time spent at the smartphone screen. The influence of smartphone addiction on the level of activity of adolescents and their level of anxiety has been proved.Key words: gadget addiction, technostress, vigilance behaviour, anxiety, mood swings, well-being. Мета. Статтю присвячено актуальній проблемі вивчення залежності від гаджетів та її впливу на психічний стан підлітків. Мета статті – емпірично дослідити особливості використання смартфону серед підлітків та з’ясувати його вплив на психічний стан підлітків.Методи. Для досягнення поставленої мети використовувалася низка методів та методик: теоретичні – аналіз, синтез, узагальнення наукової літератури з проблеми дослідження; емпіричні – анкетування (авторська анкета «Роль мобільного телефону в моєму житті»); тестування (методика «Шкала залежності від смартфону, коротка версія для підлітків» – «SAS-SV»; методика визначення рівня тривожності «Шкала Спілбергера», в адаптації Ю.Л.Ханіна, методика «Самопочуття, активність, настрій» П.Мирошнікова; статистичні методи – кореляційний аналіз (критерій К.Пірсона).Результати. У дослідженні впливу гаджетів (на прикладі смартфону) взяли участь 60 підлітків, середній вік яких становив 13,7 років, які всі є постійними користувачами смартфонів. Констатовано, що більшість підлітків використовують мобільний телефон не тільки за його основним призначенням, а в більшості випадків – для користування його додатковими можливостями – для фото, відеозйомки, як можливість виходу в Інтернет, для ігор та розваг. Підлітки витрачають для користування смартфонами від трьох до п’яти годин на день, втрачаючи самоконтроль, має місце нав’язливе бажання постійної перевірки сповіщень (поведінка пильності), поява соматичних проблем. Кореляційний аналіз дозволив установити позитивні зв’язки на рівні статистичної значущості між показниками залежності від смартфону та рівнем активності підлітків, реактивною та особистісною тривожністю; негативні кореляційні зв’язки отримано між показниками залежності від смартфону та рівнем самопочуття та настрою.Висновки. З’ясовано, що використання сучасних гаджетів, а саме смартфонів, має негативний вплив на самопочуття, настрій підлітків у бік їх погіршення в разі неможливості довгий час користуватися пристроєм або, навпаки, – за рахунок збільшення проведеного часу біля екрану смартфона. Доведено вплив залежності від смартфону на рівень активності підлітків та рівень їхньої тривожності.Ключові слова: гаджетозалежність, технострес, поведінка пильності, тривожність, зміна настрою, самопочуття.

Saltmarsh vegetation and social environment influence flexible seasonal vigilance strategies for two sympatric migratory curlew species in adjacent coastal habitats

Background Animals need to adjust their vigilance strategies when foraging between physically contrasting vegetated and non-vegetated habitats. Vegetated habitats may pose a greater risk for some if vegetation characteristics function as a visual obstruction but benefit others if they serve as protective shelter. Variation in group size, presence of similar species, along with variation in environmental conditions and anthropogenic disturbance can also influence vigilance investment. Methods In this study, we quantified the vigilance behaviour of two large-bodied, sympatric migratory curlew species—Far Eastern Curlew (Numenius madagascariensis) and Eurasian Curlew (N. arquata)—in vegetated Suaeda salsa saltmarsh and non-vegetated mudflat habitat in Liaohekou National Nature Reserve, China. We used linear mixed models to examine the effects of habitat type, season, tide time, flock size (conspecific and heterospecific), and human disturbance on curlew vigilance investment. Results Both species spent a higher percentage of time under visual obstruction in S. salsa habitat compared to mudflat habitat but in response, only Far Eastern Curlew increased their percentage of vigilance time, indicating that visual obstruction in this habitat is only a concern for this species. There was no evidence that S. salsa vegetation served as a form of cryptic background colouration since neither species decreased their vigilance effect in S. salsa habitat in spring compared to the autumn migration season. The effect of curlew social environment (i.e. flock size) was habitat dependent since percentage of vigilance time by curlews in saltmarsh increased with both the number of individual curlews and number of other birds present, but not in mudflat habitat. Conclusions We conclude that both migratory curlew species exhibit a flexible vigilance adjustment strategy to cope with the different environmental and social conditions of adjacent and sharply contrasting coastal habitats, and that the trade-off between the risks of foraging and the abundance of prey may be a relatively common phenomenon in these and other shorebird populations.

Supplementation of Lactobacillus early in life alters attention bias to threat in piglets

Gut microbes play an important role in regulating brain processes and influence behaviour, cognition and emotional states in humans and rodents. Nevertheless, it is not known how ingestion of beneficial microbes modulates emotional states in piglets and whether it can improve welfare. Here we use an attention bias task to assess the effects of Lactobacillus reuteri ATCC-PTA-6475 and Lactobacillus plantarum L1-6 supplementation early in life on emotional states in 33 piglets compared to 31 placebo supplemented piglets. We hypothesized that Lactobacillus supplementation would reduce vigilance behaviour (head at shoulder height or higher) and attention (head oriented towards the threat) in response to an auditory threat. The results showed that the control group increased vigilance behaviour in response to the threat, but there was no increase in the probiotics group. Despite the increased vigilance, the control group paid less attention to the threat. One explanation may be that control piglets avoided looking in the direction of the threat just because they perceived it as more threatening, but further research is necessary to confirm this. In conclusion, Lactobacillus supplementation may be a suitable tool to reduce anxiety, promote a more appropriate response to a challenge and so improve welfare.

Vigilance in reindeer (Rangifer tarandus); evolutionary history, predation and human interference

To elucidate genetic variability in vigilance behaviour for reindeer with historical differences in their interactions with predators and humans, we measured vigilance frequency and duration for grazing reindeer in Southern Norway (Rondane and Norefjell-Reinsjøfjell), Svalbard (Edgeøya and Nordenskiöld Land) and Barf/Royal Bay and Busen in the southern Hemisphere (South Georgia). Averaged for all areas, frequency and duration of vigilance bouts were less than 0.5 and 2.5 s, respectively. Frequency was insignificantly 1.3 times higher in Rondane than Edgeøya, and significantly 2.0, 3.5, 5.2 and 12.4 times higher than Norefjell, Nordenskiöld Land, Barf/Royal Bay and Busen, respectively. Duration per vigilance bout was not different amongst the areas. Thus, while frequency varied considerably, duration remained constant, supporting a hard-wired adaptation to, among other suggestions, an open landscape. Plasticity in frequency allows for flexible behavioral responses to environmental factors with predation, domestication and hunting key drivers for reindeer. Other factors include (1) the open, treeless alpine/Arctic environment inhabited by Rangifer subspecies allowing warning time, (2) grouping behaviour, (3) relative low density of predators and (4) the anatomy and physiology of ungulate vision.

Do long-tailed macaques avoid large heterospecific carcasses?

This anecdotal observation details the response of long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) to a heterospecific carcass. The subgroup of macaques we were following abruptly changed their direction of travel upon reaching a tree line while displaying silent vigilance behaviour. We later discovered a dog carcass in the area and concluded their behaviour may have been in response to the smell of that carcass. The carcass was not visible from the response point at the tree line due to its distance from that point (approximately 30 meters) and the uneven and densely vegetated terrain between. The macaques were therefore most likely responding to scent cues from the carcass. We suggest the observed vigilance behaviour is excessive under a strictly pathogen-avoidance explanation and may be understood as a response to a cue of potential predation risk. We review alternative explanations and suggest future research on nonhuman primate heterospecific carcass avoidance is necessary to fully assess the potential relation to perceived risk of predation.

Call order within vocal sequences of meerkats contains temporary contextual and individual information

Background The ability to recombine smaller units to produce infinite structures of higher-order phrases is unique to human language, yet evidence of animals to combine multiple acoustic units into meaningful combinations increases constantly. Despite increasing evidence for meaningful call combinations across contexts, little attention has been paid to the potential role of temporal variation of call type composition in longer vocal sequences in conveying information about subtle changes in the environment or individual differences. Here, we investigated the composition and information content of sentinel call sequences in meerkats (Suricata suricatta). While being on sentinel guard, a coordinated vigilance behaviour, meerkats produce long sequences composed of six distinct sentinel call types and alarm calls. We analysed recordings of sentinels to test if the order of the call types is graded and whether they contain additional group-, individual-, age- or sex-specific vocal signatures. Results Our results confirmed that the six distinct types of sentinel calls in addition to alarm calls were produced in a highly graded way, likely referring to changes in the perceived predation risk. Transitions between call types one step up or down the a priory assumed gradation were over-represented, while transitions over two or three steps were significantly under-represented. Analysing sequence similarity within and between groups and individuals demonstrated that sequences composed of the most commonly emitted sentinel call types showed high within-individual consistency whereby adults and females had higher consistency scores than subadults and males respectively. Conclusions We present a novel type of combinatoriality where the order of the call types contains temporary contextual information, and also relates to the identity of the caller. By combining different call types in a graded way over long periods, meerkats constantly convey meaningful information about subtle changes in the external environment, while at the same time the temporal pattern of the distinct call types contains stable information about caller identity. Our study demonstrates how complex animal call sequences can be described by simple rules, in this case gradation across acoustically distinct, but functionally related call types, combined with individual-specific call patterns.

Factors Affecting Group Size and Vigilance Behaviour of Maasai Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) on the Serengeti-Ngorongoro Ecosystem, Tanzania

This study investigated the factors affecting different group sizes of Maasai giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) in the Serengeti-Ngorongoro ecosystem. The study was motivated to test the following hypotheses: 1) in a given group, the sex ratio of males to females with calves is related to group size; 2) group size affects vigilance behaviour; 3) illegal hunting influences group size and vigilance behaviour; and 4) group size differs in different habitats, being larger in woodlands during the wet season and in riverine habitats during the dry season. A negative relationship between the ratio of the proportion of adult males to females with calves and group size was observed, whereas the proportion of females and calves increased with group size. The proportion of vigilant individuals decreased with an increase in group size. Habitat, risk of illegal hunting and proportion of calves in the group was found to be significant contributors to an increase in vigilance behaviour. However, the results do not support the hypotheses that seasonality and habitat preference affect group sizes of the Maasai giraffes. Emphasis should be put on anti-poaching efforts on males and nursery groups, especially in areas with a high risk of illegal activities.

Evaluation of disturbance effect on geese caused by an approaching unmanned aerial vehicle

SummaryUnmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are useful tools in ornithological studies. Importantly, though, UAV-caused disturbance has been noted to vary among species. This study evaluated guidelines for UAVs as a tool for researching geese. Twenty-four flocks of foraging geese were approached at an altitude of 50–100 m with a quadcopter UAV and disturbance effects were analysed across different horizontal distances between the UAV and the flocks. Geese were increasingly disturbed when approached by a UAV, with birds showing increased vigilance behaviour within approximately 300 m. Increasing UAV flight altitude as well as increasing take-off distance from the flocks both decreased the risk of bird flocks flushing. In conclusion, when monitoring geese using UAVs, flight altitudes of 100 m and take-off distances of ideally ∼500 m are recommended, to minimise initial disturbance and reducing the risk of birds flushing.