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Habitual Multitaskers Do It Badly

Posted by timothy on from the please-pass-the-toast-and-jelly-and-scalpel dept.

iandoh writes "According to a group of Stanford researchers, people who frequently multitask don't pay attention, control their memory or switch from one job to another as well as those who prefer to complete one task at a time. In other words, multitaskers are bad at multitasking. The research team is also studying how to design computer voices for cars that result in safer driving." Reader AliasMarlowe adds "The comparison involved multitasking with a number of attention or context related tests. For the study, multitasking was defined as consuming multiple media sources at once — gaming, TV, IM, email, etc. Interestingly, the habitual multitaskers were much worse at multitasking than the single taskers in these relatively straightforward tests. In self-assessment the multitaskers considered themselves good at it and the single taskers considered themselves bad at it. An extreme case of the Dunning-Kruger effect, perhaps, with consequences for business and society."

8 of 386 comments (clear)

  1. Makes sense by oldspewey · · Score: 5, Insightful

    People with attention-deficit problems are probably the ones who are most likely to attempt to multitask.

    --
    If libertarians are so opposed to effective government, why don't they all move to Somalia?
    1. Re:Makes sense by Anonymous+Cowar · · Score: 5, Insightful

      That's stress, you need a vacation. Take a good solid 2 weeks, you'll probably crash and sleep for the first few days, then get really really bored, and after the boredom clears up, you'll find that you can read a book for 14 hours again.

  2. Re:When I multitask... by oldspewey · · Score: 5, Insightful

    text while driving

    Please watch this video and reconsider your habit of texting while driving.

    --
    If libertarians are so opposed to effective government, why don't they all move to Somalia?
  3. People prefer to complete one task at a time... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ...because they know from experience that it produces better results. People who habitually multitask do not know how to do a better job, so they think they're good at multitasking. Single-taskers are probably under much more stress though as they aim higher even when multitasking.

  4. Re:Humans Can't Multitask by srobert · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Damn! You're right. I was reading Slashdot and I forgot to breathe again.

  5. Re:When I multitask... by russotto · · Score: 5, Insightful

    When I multitask, I can feel the lack of attention that I'm devoting to certain things.

    I would conjecture that those who feel they are good at multitasking do _not_ feel this -- and that's both why they feel they are good at multitasking, and why they are actually bad at it.

  6. Re:Texting while driving by silent_artichoke · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I have a better idea for you. Put the damn shit down. I don't care what kind of "emergency" you are having at work. Your business can wait the 30 minutes for you to get home. If not, you need to rethink your business processes. I don't care who you are or what company you work for, your stupid fucking text message is NOT worth more than anyone's life.

    If you or anyone else who is too self-centered and self-important to stay off the fucking phone for a few minutes while you drive ever plow into anyone, you better not hope it's me. I will haunt your fucking dumb ass for the rest of your life. I will torture you and your family until you are all on the brink of madness. Then your family will watch you commit suicide right in front of their eyes by shoving that fucking phone into your eye socket and pulling it out of your throat.

    I hate you all, you fucking phone drivers. Get off your fucking phones and out of my damn lane. YOU are the reason that it is such hell to drive now. YOU are the reason there are so many wrecks and red light running. YOU are the reason that so many lives are lost and everyone's insurance is so high. Hang the fuck up.

  7. Re:When I multitask... by c6gunner · · Score: 5, Insightful

    So what you are saying is that you are only stupid on occasion?

    90% of people are stupid on occasion. The other 10% are stupid all the time.