Guided by a Pennsylvania Amish family from Ohio, who stayed with the volunteers on a 40-acre Devon farm teaching them how to grow crops, milk goats and cows, and how to live an almost pre-industrial existence. The reality show provides an insight into the impact of simpler living on life satisfaction, health and wellbeing, away from the trappings of modern society.
The group’s journey was evaluated by Dr Myles-Jay Linton, a mental health researcher at the University of Bristol alongside a team of environmental human health and psychology researchers from the Universities of Bath, Exeter and California. Together, they developed an analytical approach to assess the group using a series of psychological assessments completed by the participants before and during the six-month experiment.
Dr Myles-Jay Linton, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow from Bristol Medical School and Elizabeth Blackwell Institute at the University of Bristol, said: “The pandemic has made lots of us reflect on our busy 21st century lives, exploring the pros and cons of a stripped back lifestyle will hopefully prompt people to really think about how living a simpler life could lead to greater life satisfaction. With the data collected we were able to unpick how personality characteristics and core values explained the drastically different experiences of community members on the farm.”
The scientific advisory team comprised, Dr Rebecca Hafner a Psychologist from the University of Bath, Dr Lewis Elliott, Lecturer in Environment and Human Health from the University of Exeter, Dr Myles-Jay Linton, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow from the Bristol Medical School at the University of Bristol, and Professor Barry Schwarz, the show’s lead psychologist and colleagues Professor Richard Lucas, Dr Elizabeth Dunn and Professor Sonja Lyubomirsky.
The Simpler Life, a six-part series, airs on Tuesdays at 9.15pm and Wednesdays at 9pm on Channel 4.