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Where do people experience flow in the 21st century? Re-assessing activities and environments for flow
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Megan Cumming,
Sara Chikhi,
Tim Jackson
Cogent Psychology, Volume: 12, Issue: 1
Swansea University Author:
Amy Isham
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© 2025 The Author(s). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.
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DOI (Published version): 10.1080/23311908.2025.2538737
Abstract
Flow supports psychological wellbeing. But where do optimal experiences of flow occur? Existing studies of flow activities are increasingly outdated and don’t account for changing patterns of time use. Further, the physical environments where flow experiences happen have not been empirically examine...
| Published in: | Cogent Psychology |
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| ISSN: | 2331-1908 |
| Published: |
Informa UK Limited
2025
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| Online Access: |
Check full text
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa70016 |
| Abstract: |
Flow supports psychological wellbeing. But where do optimal experiences of flow occur? Existing studies of flow activities are increasingly outdated and don’t account for changing patterns of time use. Further, the physical environments where flow experiences happen have not been empirically examined. This research explores flow activities and environments within a UK-based (Study 1, n = 4000) and international (Study 2, n = 839) sample. Commonly reported flow activities were largely consistent with existing research, with activities such as work, sport, reading, arts, and contemplative practices being frequently mentioned. Flow environments were varied, but the home and nature were prominent themes. Whilst certain flow activities tended to be reported alongside certain flow environments (e.g. sports outdoors and computer in residential spaces), others (e.g. art, music, reading) were not associated with specific locations. Together, findings consolidate understandings of the common sites of flow and provide preliminary insights into the role physical environments might play in supporting flow. |
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| Keywords: |
Flow experiences; time use; activities; environments; wellbeing |
| College: |
Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences |
| Funders: |
This research was supported by the UK Economic and Social Research Council (grant no: ES/M010163/1) which supports the Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity and funded Study 1. Laudes Foundation (grant no: GR-076204) also provides financial support to the Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity and funded Megan Cumming’s PhD studentship. Sara Chikhi participated in this research through the Nuffield Research Placements scheme. Study 2 was run with financial support from a Natural Environment Research Council Discipline Hopping grant awarded to Amy Isham from Swansea University. |
| Issue: |
1 |