{"id":2260,"date":"2025-08-22T18:46:49","date_gmt":"2025-08-22T18:46:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.aurorasaurus.org\/?p=2260"},"modified":"2025-08-22T18:46:49","modified_gmt":"2025-08-22T18:46:49","slug":"getting-into-flow-in-participatory-science","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.aurorasaurus.org\/?p=2260","title":{"rendered":"Getting into Flow in Participatory Science"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When chasing aurora, have you ever felt your mindset shift? You might think of it as getting into the zone, or into the groove of the chase. \u201cThere’s this focus that, once it becomes intense, leads to a sense of ecstasy, a sense of clarity: you know exactly what you want to do from one moment to the other\u2026.You know that what you need to do is possible to do, even though difficult, and sense of time disappears, you forget yourself, you feel part of something larger. And once the conditions are present, what you are doing becomes worth doing for its own sake\u201d (Csikszentmihalyi, 2004). <\/p>\n\n\n

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Photo by Hugo Sanchez, Bon Accord, Alberta, Canada, December 17, 2023.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

A few years ago, Dr. Liz and project manager Laura began to wonder if aurora chasers\u2014and participatory scientists more broadly\u2014experienced this feeling. It\u2019s something that the late co-founder of the field of positive psychology Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced \u201cMee-hi Chick-sent-mee-hi\u201d) described as \u201cflow,\u201d because so many people he interviewed described the sensation as creative pursuits like music \u201cflowing out of them\u201d (Csikszentmihalyi, 2004).\u00a0 Flow is a concept that is studied not just in psychology, but in education, and was part of Laura\u2019s museum education coursework. In this post, which is based on a poster we presented at the 2023 Association for Advancing Participatory Sciences conference<\/a>, we\u2019ll go into the ideas behind flow and how it applies to the science we do together.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is flow?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Flow state is \u201cbeing completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you’re using your skills to the utmost\u201d (Geirland, 1996). Perhaps even more relatable to aurora chasers experiencing long drives, frigid temperatures, late nights, and no certainty of actually seeing the Lights, flow is \u201cso enjoyable that people will continue to do [the activity] even at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it.\u201d (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). For example, Aurorasaurus Ambassador Justin Anderson once told us about chasing Comet NEOWISE for twelve nights straight in 2020\u2014with three hours of sleep each night. \u201cI don\u2019t know how I could do it now,\u201d he said, \u201cbut I\u2019d do it again in a heartbeat.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part of the reason this is important is the connection between flow, happiness, and feeling fulfilled in life. According to Csikszentmihalyi, \u201cIn the long run, the more flow we experience in our daily lives, the more likely we are to feel happy overall. We\u2019ve also found that the link between flow and happiness depends on whether the flow-producing activity is complex, whether it leads to new challenges and then to personal as well as cultural growth. It provides motivation to pursue high-flow activities.\u201d (Kawamura et al., 2014). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But how do we get to flow? In order to enter a flow state, an activity needs to balance high skill with high challenge level, graphing to the the yellow region shown below. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Mental state in terms of challenge level and skill level, according to Csikszentmihalyi’s flow model, Wikimedia Commons. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

This shows up in studies in the field of participatory science: for example, in \u201cMotivations, learning and creativity in online citizen science,\u201d Jennett et al. (2016) found that \u201cbarriers for engagement included finding the task difficult and\/or boring.\u201d Boredom is low in challenge level and moderate in skill level, so it would not accomplish flow. As project leaders, one of our goals is to work toward supporting your skill growth to balance the challenge level of chasing aurora. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flow and participatory science<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Participatory science is a shared endeavor: we have the goal of doing amazing science together. Your experience as a volunteer shapes the data that is gathered, and it\u2019s important that we reciprocate by providing you with an impactful experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Csikszentmihalyi wrote his influential book Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience<\/em> prior to the rise of participatory science as a recognized field, he included a section on flow in science and amateur science. \u201cThe mental framework that makes science enjoyable,\u201d he says, \u201cis accessible to everyone. It involves curiosity, careful observation, a disciplined way of recording events, and finding ways to tease out the underlying regularities in what one learns. It also requires the humility to be willing to learn from the results of past investigators, coupled with enough skepticism and openness of mind to reject beliefs that are not supported by facts\u2026.If flow, rather than success and recognition, is the measure by which to judge its value, science can contribute immensely to the quality of life.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Studies of citizen science motivation often overlap with the concept of flow or cite Csikszentmihalyi (Jennett, 2016; Tiago, 2017), but in our poster we suggested that we might be able to serve our volunteers even better by studying it more and including flow in the way we evaluate our projects. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flow and aurora chasing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Csikszentmihalyi identified seven key components of flow. When we listen to aurora chasers or read about their experiences, we find that they match the components very well:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Component of Flow<\/strong><\/td>Aurora Chaser\u2019s Experience<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Completely involved in what they are doing\u2014focused, concentrated<\/td>\u201cEspecially during the bigger [solar] storms that last four or five days, you end up having your life consumed by it. You don\u2019t really get sleep, and you end up having this weird routine that\u2019s based around the aurora.\u201d \u2014Alaskan student and aurora chaser Andy Witteman (Aurorasaurus, 2021). <\/td><\/tr>
A sense of ecstasy\u2014of being outside everyday reality<\/td>\u201cI think it puts you in a completely different world…it is a very mesmerizing experience.\u201d \u2014Alberta Aurora Chaser Chandresh \u201cC.K.\u201d Kedhambadi, Chasing Steve<\/em> (Fraser & Mallen, 2019). <\/td><\/tr>
Great inner clarity\u2014knowing what needs to be done, and how well they are doing<\/td>\u201cThe chase really<\/em> starts when we start watching the Sun, and we start watching the data. And we start looking to see: what\u2019s happening on the Sun? Is there a solar flare? Is there a coronal hole? Is that affecting the solar wind between the Earth and the Sun? And then we start watching the sky to see: where are we going to be able to find the clearest sky? You can end up driving around quite a bit.\u201d\u2014Alberta Aurora Chaser Chris Ratzlaff, Chasing Steve<\/em> (Fraser & Mallen, 2019). <\/td><\/tr>
Knowing that the activity is doable\u2014that their skills are adequate to the task<\/td>“Part of the appeal is definitely the thrill of the chase because there is never a guarantee that you will see the Northern Lights. There is a real challenge in understanding when they might be visible. You always require a degree of luck as well but when things go your way the sense of achievement is huge.”
\u2014Scottish aurora chaser Gordon Mackie (Winterman, 2014).<\/td><\/tr>
A sense of serenity\u2014no worries about oneself, and a feeling of growing beyond the boundaries of the ego<\/td>\u201cWhen I\u2019m outside and I\u2019m looking at the stars, I\u2019m looking at the Northern Lights, I\u2019m looking at everything that\u2019s happening above me, it is humbling. We\u2019re made of the same stuff. I\u2019m a part of everything that\u2019s happening in the sky.\u201d \u2014Alberta Aurora Chaser Song Despins, Chasing Steve <\/em>(Fraser & Mallen, 2019). <\/td><\/tr>
Timelessness\u2014thoroughly focused on the present, hours seem to pass by in minutes<\/td>\u201cI\u2019ll be out all night if I don\u2019t keep track of the time. Monday night I was out from 7pm to 2am and it felt like an hour.\u201d
\u2014Manitoba astrophotographer Justin Anderson (Aurorasaurus, 2021). <\/td><\/tr>
Intrinsic motivation\u2014whatever produces flow becomes its own reward <\/td>“Hunting the Northern Lights is pure escapism for me, a way to tune out from what’s gone on in the day. They are addictive, there is a compulsion to see more and more. We get compared to tornado chasers in the US and it is that same sort of obsession. It’s exciting, you get a real high from it.”\u2014Scottish aurora chaser Barry Stewart (Winterman, 2014).<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

These aspects, especially the serenity of dark skies and reward of watching the everchanging aurora, feel very familiar. In short, we think that flow might be a very positive part of the aurora chase, as well as the pursuit of participatory science. A paper by Jennett et al. (2016) points out that \u201cvolunteers are motivated to contribute more than once if they feel like they have an aptitude for the task, they enjoy participating in the task, and\/or they enjoy participating in the activities surrounding the project.\u201d These aspects tie in with Csikszentmihalyi\u2019s components of inner clarity and knowing the activity is doable. Knowledge of a person\u2019s own aptitude also relates to having good feedback, which Csikszentmihalyi links to flow (Kawamura, 2014). Participatory science can increase the flow reward potential for aurora chasers by providing affirmation of the aurora chaser\u2019s skills, both in real time and after the fact. Aurora chaser Andy Witteman pointed out to us in conversation that while taking a beautiful photo of the aurora is exciting, it is also validating to find out months or years afterward that it contains interesting scientific phenomena. It makes a difference to hear this from scientists, who study these phenomena for a living. In that way, we can weave multiple forms of expertise and learn about the aurora together.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Photo by Vincent Ledvina, Churchill, Manitoba, 2022.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In Conclusion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Flow is an experience that we can find in many aspects of life. For example, Dr. Liz gets into flow foraging for fungi. Project manager Laura experiences flow getting people excited about science in outreach presentations\u2014or crafting for her nerdy fandoms. Participatory science at its best weaves a positive feedback loop between doing science, increasing knowledge about phenomena, and having good experiences. Based on our observations, as well as those of aurora chasers and Csikszentmihalyi himself, we suspect that aurora chasers enter flow states that might inspire involvement in participatory science activities. Put another way, Ambassador Tanya Melnik recently asked whether participation in a citizen science project can further enhance enjoyment of the aurora experience. This was inspired by a paper<\/a> on enjoyment and photography. The authors note that \u201cphoto-taking directs people\u2019s attention to the specific aspects and moments of the experience they want to capture, rather than heightening engagement across all aspects of the experience.\u201d The implication for aurora chasing is that photography engages people more deeply with the aurora itself, similar to slow looking<\/a> practice in museums. In our poster, we suggested that other participatory science projects could also benefit from looking into the extent to which flow influences participation, in order to enhance or avoid interfering with participants achieving flow. It\u2019s a place where wellbeing and doing science align: \u201cThe best moments usually occur when a person\u2019s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.\u201d (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). What are some ways you find flow in your aurora chasing?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Resources<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Aurorasaurus (2021). Aurorasaurus Q&A on Informal Education and Kp Fox [Video]. YouTube. https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=s8YbZ4sG_Xs<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brandt, L. & MacDonald, E.A. (2020). A Science Products Inventory: Case Study Applications for Evaluating NASA Citizen Science Projects. AGU Fall Meeting 2020. https:\/\/agu.confex.com\/agu\/fm20\/meetingapp.cgi\/Paper\/693915<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2004). Flow, the secret to happiness [Video]. TED Conferences. https:\/\/www.ted.com\/talks\/mihaly_csikszentmihalyi_flow_the_secret_to_happiness<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Geirland, John (1996). “Go With The Flow”. Wired magazine, September, Issue 4.09. https:\/\/www.wired.com\/1996\/09\/czik\/<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fleer, M. Scientific Playworlds: a Model of Teaching Science in Play-Based Settings. Res Sci Educ 49, 1257\u20131278 (2019). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/s11165-017-9653-z<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fraser, J. & Mallen, L. (Directors). (2019). Chasing Steve [Film]. TELUS World of Science. https:\/\/vimeo.com\/ondemand\/chasingsteve\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jackson, et al. (2020). Shifting Forms of Engagement: Volunteer Learning in Online Citizen Science. Proc. ACM Hum.-Comput. Interact. 4, CSCW1, Article 36 (May 2020), 19 pages. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1145\/3392841<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jennett, J., et al. (2016). \u2018Motivations, learning and creativity in online citizen science\u2019. JCOM 15 (03), A05. https:\/\/jcom.sissa.it\/sites\/default\/files\/documents\/JCOM_1503_2016_A05.pdf<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kanhadilok, P. & Watts, M. (2014) Adult play-learning: Observing informal family education at a science museum, Studies in the Education of Adults, 46:1, 23-41, DOI: 10.1080\/02660830.2014.11661655<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kawamura, K.M. (2014), “Kristine Marin Kawamura, PhD interviews Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, PhD”, Cross Cultural Management: An International Journal, Vol. 21 No. 4. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1108\/CCM-08-2014-0094<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lonczak, H.L. (2020), \u201cHow to Measure Flow with Scales and Questionnaires\u201d, [Blog]. Positivepsychology.com. https:\/\/positivepsychology.com\/how-to-measure-flow-scales-questionnaires\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moneta G.B. (2012) On the Measurement and Conceptualization of Flow. In: Engeser S. (eds) Advances in Flow Research. Springer, New York, NY. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/978-1-4614-2359-1_2<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tiago et al., (2017) The influence of motivational factors on the frequency of participation in citizen science activities, Nature Conservation https:\/\/natureconservation.pensoft.net\/articles.php?id=13429<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Winterman, D. (2014). Aurora hunters: The people who chase the Northern Lights. BBC News. https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/magazine-26646648.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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