In 2019 we began working with the Department of Psychology at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ostrava. Research sessions for university staff and students take place in our sanctuaries near Kutná Hora.
Principal investigator
The research is led by Mgr. Marek Malůš, Ph.D. — head of the Department of Psychology at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ostrava, recipient of the University of Ostrava Rector’s Award 2018, full member of the Czech Association for Psychotherapy (ČAP) and one of the leading Czech experts on the method of restricted environmental stimulation (Chamber REST) and darkness therapy. He has worked at the Faculty of Arts since 2014.
Education and training: Marek Malůš completed a Long-term training in integrative psychotherapy under MUDr. Jan Kubánek and prof. PhDr. Stanislav Kratochvíl, CSc., accredited by the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic.
External verification and profiles:
- 🎓 Profile at the Czech Association for Psychotherapy — full membership, integrative approach
- 🔬 Darkness Therapy Foundation — research platform
- 💼 Psychotherapy and coaching — private practice
- 🏛️ LinkedIn profile — Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology
Research aims
The interdisciplinary team’s research looks at the effect of a dark retreat on:
- Psychological parameters — cognitive functions (memory, attention), stress levels, burnout syndrome
- Physiological indicators — eyesight measurements, blood pressure, heart activity and heart rate variability (HRV)
- Endocrine responses — above all melatonin secretion
The monitoring is carried out in cooperation with the Department of Physiology and Pathophysiology at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ostrava — an interdisciplinary approach that is unique in this field.
Specific grant projects
SGS10/FF/2016-2017 — “An experimental study of cognitive and psychophysiological processes under Chamber REST conditions III”
- Principal investigator: Mgr. Marek Malůš, Ph.D.
- Period: 1/2016 – 12/2017
- Funding provider: Specific University Research
- Total costs: 533,000 CZK
- 🔗 Project details at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ostrava
Academic publications and sources
- 📄 “Darkness therapy: a follow-up study” — peer-reviewed publication with a DOI
- 📰 “A cure for burnout? A week in the dark” — Universitas (the academic magazine of Czech universities)
- 🏛️ “How darkness therapy came about” — official article by the University of Ostrava (OU@live)
- 🌍 “From Perceptual Isolation to Darkness Therapy” — English-language lecture within the Collegium Carpathicum university network (7 universities of the Carpathian region, a Visegrad Fund project)
- 📚 Monographs and articles within M. Malůš’s line of research — RIV-registered publications, articles in Czech and English, a paper at a worldwide conference in the USA
- 🎓 Master’s thesis on Theses.cz — “Darkness therapy and its effect on the level of burnout syndrome”
International dimension
The research builds on an international partnership with the University of British Columbia (UBC), Canada. Marek Malůš lectures abroad regularly and is a member of the international community of REST researchers.
Historical context of the Czech research tradition
This line of research continues the work of the Czech pioneers MUDr. Ludvík Šváb and prof. MUDr. Ján Gross, who were already studying the method of restricted environmental stimulation in the 1960s to 1980s.
Videos
- 🎥 University of Ostrava Rector’s Award 2018 — award ceremony (YouTube)
- 🎥 A talk on darkness therapy with Marek Malůš — Mezi ploty (official channel)
What does this partnership mean for you? The Léčba tmou centre near Kutná Hora is not just a wellness retreat. It is a setting where scientifically documented research into the impact of dark retreats on human health is taking place — led by a renowned Czech psychotherapist with training accredited by the Czech Ministry of Health, and backed by the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Ostrava.
