Article Dans Une Revue Current Psychology Année : 2025

Digital tablet activities to alleviate preoperative anxiety: variability in anxiety and flow levels in children

Résumé

To manage unpleasant emotions, such as anxiety in a stressful situation, engaging in a distracting activity can be a valuable coping mechanism. The effectiveness of distraction is thought to be regulated by the level of flow generated by the distracting activity. However, there has been little research about the dynamics of the relationship between flow to anxiety, and especially of its interindividual variability (influenced by individual traits) and intraindividual variability (fluctuations over time), both of which may affect anxiety regulation. Moreover, this process has not been studied in children. This study examined the dynamic relationship between flow and state anxiety in children, focusing on intraindividual variability over time and interindividual differences, including the moderating role of trait anxiety, in a stressful context. Seventy children were provided with either a videogame or a cartoon as a distracting activity during the preoperative waiting period before surgery. Anxiety and flow levels were observed and recorded every 10 min using observational grids. Intraindividual variation was analyzed as a nonlinear trajectory (GAMM), considering trait anxiety and the type of distracting activity. Results indicated that (1) flow levels tended to decrease over time, and more severely in the videogame condition, contrary to expectations; and (2) the relationship between flow and anxiety is stable, with flow levels negatively associated with anxiety levels throughout the waiting period. These findings provide evidence regarding the benefits of flow for emotional regulation and highlight the need for future investigations to tailor interventions to address individual differences and situational demands.

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hal-05092812 , version 1 (15-10-2025)

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Camille Tordet, Séverine Erhel, Virginie Dodeler, Eric Jamet, Nicolas Nardi, et al.. Digital tablet activities to alleviate preoperative anxiety: variability in anxiety and flow levels in children. Current Psychology, 2025, 44, pp.8893-8904. ⟨10.1007/s12144-025-07807-x⟩. ⟨hal-05092812⟩
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