Davide Zanardi

Ritratto di Luca Bergamin

Curriculum
Neuroscience, Technology and Society, XXXVIII series
Grant sponsor

Dept of Development and Socialization (PNRR)
Supervisor

Barbara Arfè
Co-supervisor
s
GianAntonio Susto
Contact
davide.zanardi.1@phd.unipd.it

Project description
Individuals’ psychological well-being is deeply related to elements of their living environment. Given this relationship, it is important to investigate the environmental aspects that play a predominant role in defining the interaction between humans and their living environment. Some of the environments that have the greatest impact on a person's psychological well-being are their homes, workplaces, and schools. Individuals who can achieve a state of well-being in these settings can begin a virtuous cycle where human-environment interdependence positively influences both parts of this system. In this view, the concept of Human Factors is fundamental for creating and evaluating positive environments that safeguard the psychological well-being of humans. Given this reason, our goal is to investigate the influences of environmental factors on people’s psychological well-being. The emphasis is placed on the Human Factors that determine the quality of work and school environments. Emerging virtual reality technologies, neuropsychological tests, and physiological indices are used as evaluation methods. Adopting a multidisciplinary approach and maintaining a human-centered focus is, in our opinion, the best approach for a more comprehensive understanding of the complex interactions between individuals in their living environments. The outcome of this project is aimed at improving living environments from a mental health perspective through the reduction in stress, cognitive load, and fatigue experienced in everyday situations. In school contexts, this leads to improved working conditions for teachers and facilitates the learning process for students, as well as a greater sense of cooperation between individuals. Similarly, in workplace settings, we anticipate improved teamwork, lower accident rates, and better worker performance. Finally, a final desired outcome is to encourage the dissemination and acceptance of new technologies for the assessment and resolution of environmental factors that determine psychological well-being in living environments.