Post-Covid lifestyle and mental wellbeing

Engaging in different daily social and physical activities is vital for health and wellbeing. However, rapid advancements in digital technology and the recent COVID-19 pandemic have affected this engagement because they are fundamentally changing the way we communicate, live, work, and our lifestyle in general. Our proposed research project will investigate how engaging in different leisure (e.g., physical exercise, different types of entertainment, social activities) and non-leisure (e.g., (home) office computer work; face-to-face and online meetings) activities under different living and working environments affect our mental wellbeing and cognitive performance in the digital society we live in today.

We believe that our project has a high potential for profound impact. The plan is to start the project with investigating the impact on individuals’ lifestyles in their living environments on their health, mental wellbeing, and cognition. In a second step, this can easily be expanded to other scenarios, such as the aging population, clinical populations, or employees at the workplace, which provides a profound chance for widespread impact.

Meet the Principal Investigator(s) for the project

Dr Weifeng Chen - I am a Reader in Innovation Management and Strategy at Brunel Business School, specialising in strategic innovation, technology management, and executive decision-making. My work centres on how organisations harness emerging technologies to build sustainable value, strengthen competitiveness, and lead transformational change, with a strong focus on AI strategy and digital transformation. My research and advisory work explores innovation ecosystems, strategic alliances, corporate governance, and the circular economy, highlighting how AI, green technologies, and smart city innovations are reshaping industries and creating new strategic opportunities. I have led collaborative initiatives with global organisations such as the United Nations, the European Union, and the British Council, alongside extensive partnerships with industry and public sector leaders. My consulting experience spans AI strategy, business model innovation, and operational optimisation, supporting organisations navigating complex strategic and technological transitions. My work is published in top-tier journals including the Journal of Business Research, Production Planning and Control, International Review of Administrative Sciences, Technological Forecasting & Social Change, Information Technology for Development, and Regional Studies. Since completing my PhD in 2008, I have taken a leadership role in developing research capacity and mentoring emerging scholars, supervising more than 20 PhD researchers to successful completion. As an experienced educator, I deliver executive and academic programmes on strategy, innovation, and technology adoption across the UK, Asia, the EU, the GCC, and the USA, and serve as an external examiner for management and marketing programmes and PhD examinations internationally. Consultation and Feedback Sessions for Students Tuesday 10:00 – 11:00 Friday 10:00 - 11:00 Please contact me via email before hand to confirm the meeting time slot.

Partnering with confidence

Organisations interested in our research can partner with us with confidence backed by an external and independent benchmark: The Knowledge Exchange Framework. Read more.

Project last modified 16/01/2024