In this seminar, senior researcher Aleksejs Šņitņikovs from Rīga Stradiņš University will give a short talk regarding the upcoming Horizon call titled "The impact of the use of digital tools outside school and for communication on educational outcomes and mental health” (HORIZON-CL2-2026-01-TRANSFO-04) and he is especially keen on finding potential collaborators. He will give a short talk on his current plan for the project and how his earlier work on the topic ties in with it.
Shortly about the project:
In this project, we will develop a research methodology and conduct a study to address the questions outlined in the call, such as:
* Which types of digital device use do pupils perform during school and do their digital activities differ depending on different contexts (i.e., during class, during breaks or between classes)?
* How can digital leisure activities contribute to skills development, such as problem-solving and digital literacy and what is the transferability of these skills into education?
* To what extent is the impact of digital tools for leisure on academic performance mediated by students’ well-being?
In this project proposal, we build on research conducted by the Institute of Digital Humanities (RTU) on the impact of online activities on the development of intellectual styles, as well as digital and cognitive skills. One of the key findings of our research is that the intensity of internet use (measured as average hours per week) does not predict digital or cognitive skills. Rather, the type of usage—specifically, online activities—is more important than the amount of time spent online. As a theoretical framework, we will use activity theory (Davydov, CHAT), as it appears to be effective in explaining the impact of online activities on youth.
We are seeking a partner in Finland who would be interested in studying these issues, is familiar with the CHAT/activity theory approach, and preferably has experience researching digital tools, online activities, and youth.