MEDIA RELEASE — October 28,  2025 — R0128

Spaceflight might seem like an out-of-this-world adventure, but it’s all in a day’s work for astronauts, according to Brock University researcher Kirsten Robertson.

“As unique as it is to be an astronaut, it’s still a job,” says the Associate Professor of Organizational Behaviour and Human Resources. “Some of what you and I experience in the office might surprisingly also be relevant for astronauts, even in their extreme context.” 

Robertson, who is an expert in the social dynamics of work, is part of a Canada-wide research team exploring the psychological working conditions of astronauts on mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

Their study — Stress, Transcendence and Resilience in Space — Coping, Meaningful Work and Growth Among ISS Astronauts (C-STARS) — is undertaken with the financial support of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

On Tuesday, Oct. 28, CSA astronaut Joshua Kutryk discussed the C-STARS study at a virtual media briefing along with three other new experiments that will be conducted on the ISS. 

The C-STARS study is led by Associate Professor Jelena Brcic at the University of the Fraser Valley along with Co-Investigators Jason Harley at McGill University and Jennifer Stellar at the University of Toronto.  

“Future missions to the moon and one day perhaps even Mars will benefit from this important research aimed at better understanding astronauts’ well-being in space,” says St. Catharines Member of Parliament Chris Bittle. “It’s very exciting to see Brock University contributing to this groundbreaking work.”

As part of the C-STARS team, Robertson and her graduate students will focus on exploring the extent to which astronauts find meaning in their work. 

“When they’re up in space, will there be moments where they’ll find their experience to be particularly meaningful?” she says. “Will there be moments, perhaps, where they’re asking: ‘What am I doing up here? Why did I sign up for this?’”

Since work is a big part of most people’s lives, Robertson says having a sense of purpose and using one’s abilities to meet collective goals “positively contributes to overall meaningfulness of life.”

Robertson is designing questions that will measure astronauts’ sense of meaningfulness, both of specific tasks they perform and the overall mission.  

Her questions will be included in pre- and post-mission surveys administered to the crew as well as in-depth interviews the researchers will conduct with the mission members.

Astronauts will also be asked to keep a diary of their thoughts and feelings at regular intervals throughout their time on the ISS. 

These subjective accounts will be matched to physiological measures of transcendent emotions like awe, gratitude and compassion, says Robertson. 

 “The research will help to advance knowledge of why and how people come to experience their work as meaningful when confronted with critical challenges,” she says. “For astronauts, this involves living in a small, isolated and dangerous environment.” 

The wider C-STARS team will examine the types of coping strategies used during spaceflight and how these can shape the perception of stress and technical task performance.  

Unlike a workplace on Earth, astronauts don’t get to go home at the end of the day and can’t step out for a break to clear their head. 

This could make achieving a work-life balance quite difficult, says Robertson. Added to that is the pressure of job performance, where a mistake could literally mean life or death for the crew. 

The C-STARS team will explore how these and other daily stressors affect those working on the ISS.

Parallel to the pre- and post-mission surveys and in-depth interviews, other researchers on the team will be collecting blood, saliva and other samples to measure the body’s nervous system responses to stress. 

Robertson says the team’s findings will shed light on working conditions in particular occupations on Earth.

“When we work in our nice offices, we usually don’t have to think too much about safety or isolation on a day-to-day basis, but there are people doing jobs similar to the extreme conditions of space,” she says.

That includes those who work on oil rigs, Coast Guard search-and-rescue operations and in other remote locations far from family and friends. 

For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

*Sarah Ackles, Communications Specialist, Brock University [email protected] or 289-241-5483

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