Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 24, 2025
13:00
Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments
Published on: January 23, 2017
9.9K
Unravelling the link between media multitasking and attention across three samples
Kenneth Rioja1,2, Sezen Cekic1,2, Daphne Bavelier2
1Faculté de Psychologie et Science de l'Éducation, Université de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland.
Technology, Mind, and Behavior
|July 3, 2023
Summary
Media multitasking negatively impacts sustained attention, with a medium effect size confirmed by both questionnaire and task-based measures. Study variations are partly explained by measurement choices and sample origins.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Media Psychology
- Human-Computer Interaction
Background:
- A proposed negative link between media multitasking and sustained attention is debated due to mixed findings in prior research.
- Previous studies have yielded inconsistent results regarding the relationship between media multitasking and attention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effect size of the link between media multitasking and sustained attention.
- To investigate how variations in media multitasking measurement, sustained attention assessment, and sample origin influence this relationship.
Main Methods:
- Recruited 924 participants from MTurk, Prolific, and university student populations.
- Utilized an established and a novel, shortened media multitasking measure.
- Assessed sustained attention via questionnaires and tasks, alongside impulsivity and sensation seeking.
Main Results:
- Established a medium negative effect size (r=.20 for questionnaires, r=.21 for tasks) between media multitasking and sustained attention.
- Found that differences in media multitasking measures and sample origins contribute to variations in study findings.
Conclusions:
- A significant negative relationship exists between media multitasking and sustained attention.
- Measurement choices and sample characteristics are key factors explaining discrepancies in previous research findings.
