Technology and Ever-Falling Attention Spans

An anonymous reader writes: The BBC has an article about technology's effect on concentration in the workplace. They note research finding that the average information worker's attention span has dropped significantly in only a few years. "Back in 2004 we followed American information workers around with stopwatches and timed every action. They switched their attention every three minutes on average. In 2012, we found that the time spent on one computer screen before switching to another computer screen was one minute 15 seconds. By the summer of 2014 it was an average of 59.5 seconds." Many groups are now researching ways to keep people in states of focus and concentration. An app ecosystem is popping up to support that as well, from activity timing techniques to background noise that minimizes distractions. Recent studies are even showing that walking slowly on a treadmill while you work can have positive effects on focus and productivity. What tricks do you use to keep yourself on task?

Comments

Re:Yup

[AuMatar]

You'd drive me insane. I don't mind a quick drop by. It frees you up if you're blocked, allows for some human interaction, and if I'm too busy I'll just say no. Now put a meeting on my calendar and the 15-20 minutes before it is totally lost, as I avoid starting anything anticipating the meeting. Just come and talk to me.

Not to mention that unless you have a good rapport with your manager a 1:1 is a huge cause of stress. Its a "oh shit, what' the matter now" issue, especially if a non-regular one appears on my calendar.