THE ROUGH GUIDE TO PSYCHOLOGYafter lunch is more likely to buy chocolates thinking they’ll be able to
resist them until the weekend, when the likelihood is they’ll end up
eating them that night.
On a more hopeful note, research shows that many of us are more
physically active than we think, and would benefit if only we perceived
that activity as physical exercise. In a 2007 study, Alia Crum and Ellen
Langer told hotel cleaners that the work they performed on a daily
basis counted as exercise and meant that they effectively led an active
Improving hospitals
While billions of dollars are spent on the latest breakthrough drugs
and hi-tech medical equipment, psychology research has confirmed
that the simple fact of a hospital’s architectural design and layout
can have a profound effect on patient recovery. A patient who has a
window with a view is likely to recover more quickly than one who
doesn’t. Large, old-fashioned hospitals, with maze-like corridors, are
easy to get lost in, causing potential stress to patients, which in turn
can affect their immune system and speed of recovery. A light-filled
environment with an intuitive layout and clear signage can have
the reverse effect, fostering an atmosphere of care and wellbeing.
Research has also highlighted that fewer falls and medication errors
occur in private rooms than in public wards, and that single-sex wards
are more conducive to recovery than mixed wards. Providing patients
with access to quiet areas and to the outdoors, especially to gardens,
can also aid their recovery. A US pioneer in this field is Dr John Zeisel,
co-founder of Hearthstone, an organization which provides residential
care for people with Alzheimer’s disease. The design of Hearthstone’s
six residences are informed by psychological findings, such as that
people with Alzheimer’s display less anxiety when they are surrounded
by their own possessions.
Introducing artwork into hospitals – something the UK charity
Paintings in Hospitals has been doing since 1959 – can also benefit
patients and improve the overall environment. Indeed, in 2004 the
Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, published “A Study of the
Effects of Visual and Performing Arts in Healthcare”, which concluded
that art in healthcare facilities can reduce levels of patient anxiety
and depression, boost staff morale and even reduce the use of some
medications. Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, which opened in
1993, has made both the visual and the performing arts an integral
part of its healthcare philosophy. In 2006, Zeisel told The Psychologist
magazine that there is an almost spiritual component to the way art
contributes to our health and wellbeing: “It touches our brains in a way
that wakes us up.”