Social interactions in isolated, confined, and extreme environments: A study of Antarctic winter teams using wearable sensors.

Abstract

Long-duration space missions expose crews to extreme psychological and social stressors due to prolonged isolation and confinement. To examine how such conditions impact individual and team functioning, we studied a 10-mo Antarctic overwintering mission at Concordia Station, an analog for spaceflight, using self-report measures and wearable proximity sensors. Twelve crew members were assessed at four time-points. Results revealed a progressive increase in feelings of loneliness and conflict, while cohesion and individual performance declined. Close-range interactions were positively associated with conflicts and paranoid thoughts and negatively related with individual performance, suggesting..