Abstract
In two experiments, we sought to determine whether (a) people are aware of the frequently observed performance costs associated with engaging in media multitasking (Experiment 1), and (b) if so, whether they modulate the extent to which they engage in multitasking as a function of task demand (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1, participants completed a high-demand task (2-back) both independently and while a video was simultaneously presented. To determine whether people were sensitive to the impact that the concurrent video had on primary-task performance, subjective estimates of performance were collected following both trial types (No-Video vs. Video trials), as were explicit beliefs about the influence of the video on performance. In Experiment 2, we modified our paradigm by allowing participants to turn the video on and off at their discretion, and had them complete either a high-demand task (2-back) or a low-demand task (0-back). Findings from Experiment 1 indicated that people are sensitive to the magnitude of the decrement that media multitasking has on primary-task performance. In addition, findings from Experiment 2 indicated that people modulate the extent to which they engage in media multitasking in accordance with the demands of their primary task. In particular, participants completing the high-demand task were more likely to turn off the optional video stream compared to those completing the low-demand task. The results suggest that people media multitask in a strategic manner by balancing considerations of task performance with other potential concerns.
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Notes
One participant indicated their age to be 4 years old, and was therefore excluded from the age-range and mean age calculations.
One participant did not indicate their age and was thus excluded from the age range and mean calculation.
It should be noted that turning the video off paused the video and removed it from the display screen, whereas turning the video on resumed the video and returned it to the display screen.
One participant did not provide an estimate of their hits and was therefore not included in this specific analysis.
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The ideas and data appearing in this manuscript are included as part of a doctoral dissertation, made available online as per the University of Waterloo’s degree completion requirements. This research was supported by a Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grant to Daniel Smilek (#06459), an NSERC Postgraduate Doctoral Scholarship to Brandon Ralph, and a SSHRC Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship to Paul Seli. Correspondence may be directed to Brandon Ralph, Department of Psychology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave W, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3G1, Canada. Email: bcwralph@uwaterloo.ca.
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Ralph, B.C.W., Seli, P., Wilson, K.E. et al. Volitional media multitasking: awareness of performance costs and modulation of media multitasking as a function of task demand. Psychological Research 84, 404–423 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-018-1056-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-018-1056-x