Multitasking (psychology)

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Under multitasking or multi-task performance (rare human multitasking ) refers to the execution of two or more tasks at the same time or alternately at short intervals. The tasks are independent of each other, so the goal of one task is not dependent on the results of the other task. For example, an email is written and a report is listened to at the same time.

The meaning of the term is most likely derived from the technical meaning (see multitasking ). In recent years, the term multitasking has gained acceptance in both the Anglo-Saxon and German-speaking areas as a (initially probably more colloquial) description of human ability, while the term multiple task performance is a German description for this and is mainly used in specialist literature. In English, task combinations are otherwise also referred to under the terms dual / multiple task performance .

The term has not yet been precisely defined scientifically; Lee and Taatgen describe it as the "ability to handle the demands of multiple tasks at the same time". Salvucci describes multitasking as "how people integrate and carry out several (sub) tasks in the context of a larger, complex task". In addition to it is in the English-language literature also from continuous partial attention ( "continuous partial attention ") speech, which describes the capacity for simultaneous and possibly different types of stimuli.

Limits and Dangers

In order to be able to process two or more tasks at the same time, attention resources have to be divided and the multiple task performance places high demands on our attention and processing processes. Scientific studies show that the efficiency when processing different tasks alternately decreases in short periods of time compared to serial processing and can thus be associated with errors, an increased risk of accidents and a reduction in performance.

A laboratory study in which people were asked to apply the brakes in a driving simulator showed that parallel communication via a cell phone influenced performance. The test persons overlooked only 3% of the red traffic lights in the individual task (braking at red traffic lights), while in the multiple task (telephone conversation, braking at red traffic lights) they already overlooked 7% of the red traffic lights and the reaction speed for pressing the brake pedal decreased by 50 ms decreased.

This shows the limits of simultaneous information processing in view of the overstimulation of our environment. The brain automatically filters information to an amount that can be perceived by humans. During a phone call in the car, for example, the sense of sight can be reduced to what is known as " tunnel vision "; this restriction can persist for a few minutes even after the phone call. In addition to reduced responsiveness, stress can also be a result.

Determinants

The following paragraphs are not adequately provided with supporting documents ( e.g. individual evidence ). Information without sufficient evidence could be removed soon. Please help Wikipedia by researching the information and including good evidence.
Some of the studies cited are very old and questionable according to the current state of science (some sample size n = 2, n = 6; see section on exercise). Newer studies are useful as evidence. - Grampians ( discussion ) 8:44 p.m., 9 Mar. 2017 (CET)

The performance in multiple task performance is determined by three factors: task similarity, practice and task difficulty.

Similarity of tasks

If two or more tasks are very similar in terms of their stimuli (e.g. both presentations are auditory ), they require the same processing stages (e.g. both early processes) or access the same memory codes (e.g. both verbal ) is the The likelihood of interference in processing is significantly higher.

In an experiment, test persons were played an auditory message to shadow them. At the same time, further terms were presented to them either aurally in the form of words or visually in the form of shown images. When the data was then retrieved, it was found that the performance of a visual image presentation was 90%, while the performance of the auditory word presentation was very low.

exercise

How well several tasks can be performed at the same time also depends on how experienced you are with it. An experienced driver can usually have a conversation at the same time than a learner driver.

A study with student test subjects over four months showed that practice can actually make perfect. In five weekly training hours, they read a short story that had to be understood and at the same time wrote a word dictation . At the beginning, reading speed, comprehension and handwriting were impaired, after the completion of the four-month training phase, the short story could be read almost as quickly as reading alone, and both handwriting and understanding of the word categories improved.

Exercise thus promotes multiple task performance by developing strategies for execution in order to get by with fewer resources and is an indication that part of the task has been "automated", that is, places less demands on the cognitive capacity and thus allows an increase in speed. However, through practice, the interference can only be minimized, but not completely eliminated.

However, practice or experience can also have the opposite effect. Because automated processes are fast and inevitable (i.e., they are always triggered), they are inaccessible to consciousness. This can lead to interference, as can be seen from the example of the Stroop effect : a skilled reader has difficulty identifying the color of a word; instead, it automatically reproduces the written word presented. On the other hand, a novice reader has significantly fewer problems naming the color, since the word reading process is not yet automated.

Task difficulty

Task complexity is also an important factor. The more difficult an individual task is, the more attention resources it needs. The more difficult the individual task, the worse the performance in the multiple task situation.

Age and gender

Contrary to popular assumptions, non-determining influences in the case of multiple task performance are age or gender.

Age does not seem to have a significant impact on multitasking skills. The influence of gender has so far hardly been scientifically investigated. Contrary to popular belief, most studies show no difference between the sexes. Individual studies suggest a difference between the sexes in certain situations.

criticism

The philosopher Byung-Chul Han also sees multitasking critically in his medical- philosophical book Müdigkeitsgesellschaft . He compares multitasking to the behavior of animals that, in order to survive in the wild, are constantly forced to divide their attention. Han comes to a negative verdict: "The time and attention technology multitasking does not represent a civilizational progress." He criticizes the spread of multitasking because the cultural achievements of mankind, like philosophy , require a "deep contemplative attention" that goes with multitasking is not possible.

Most scientists today assume that the capacity of information processing is limited, which means that the simultaneous processing of several stimuli is only possible as long as the maximum processing resources are not exhausted. After that, there is a drop in performance or even neurobiological changes. The neuroscientist Gary Small from the University of California, Los Angeles showed that mutitasking activities and frequent internet surfing impair the dorso-lateral prefrontal cortex and thus logical and strategic thinking as well as intelligence and empathy , which the German biologist Martin Korte confirms. Gray Small coined the term digital ADHD for this in his book iBrain . However, it also creates new skills. Brain researcher David E. Meyer from the University of Michigan shows that multitaskers need more time to complete their tasks than if they did them one after the other and lost the ability to focus and suffered from increased release of stress hormones. The ADD / ADHD specialist and psychiatrist Edward Hallowell also recognizes symptoms similar to those of ADHD in multitaskers. In his book CrazyBusy he shows that the entire business world tends to be affected by the symptoms.

See also

Web links

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  1. ↑ Microsoft has advertised (preemptive) multitasking as a technical innovation in Windows 95 . A large advertising campaign and the widespread use of the operating system contributed significantly to the fact that the term became known to the general public.
  2. ↑ Lee, FJ & Taatgen, NA: multi-tasking as skill acquisition. Proceedings of the twenty-fourth annual conference of the cognitive science society. 2002, Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. Fairfax, VA, pp. 572–577, ( PDF; 109 kB ( Memento of the original from June 13, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / act-r.psy.cmu.edu
  3. ↑ Salvucci, DD: A multitasking general executive for compound continuous tasks. Cognitive science. 2005, pp. 457–492, ( PDF; 1.1 MB ( Memento of the original from August 28, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and remove then this note. ) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / viscog.cs.drexel.edu
  4. ↑ van der Linden, D., Keijsers, GPJ, Eling, P., & van Schaijk, R .: Work stress and attentional difficulties: an initial study on burnout and cognitive failures . In: Work & Stress . No. 19 , p. 23-36 .
  5. ^ DL Strayer, DL, FA Drews: Cell-phone-induced driver distraction . In: Psychological Science . 16th edition. 2007, p. 128-131 .
  6. ^ Koch, W. Prinz: II. Process interference and code overlap in dual-task performance. Ed .: III. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance. No. 28 , 2002, pp. 192-201 .
  7. ^ DL Strayer, WA Johnston: Driven to distraction: dual-task studies of simulated driving and conversing on a cellular telephone . Ed .: Psychological Science. No. 12 , 2001, p. 462-466 .
  8. ↑ BR-Documentation The World of the Senses (episode Der Sehsinn , Bayerischer Rundfunk, 2004, 44 min.)
  9. ^ Joseph Krummenacher, Hermann J. Müller: Attention and Performance . In: Jochen Müsseler, Martina Rieger (Ed.): General Psychology . 3. Edition. Springer, Berlin / Heidelberg, ISBN 978-3-642-53898-8 , pp. 133 .
  10. ^ DA Allport, B. Antonis, P. Reynolds: On the division of attention: A disproof of the single channel hypothesis . Ed .: The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology. No. 24 , p. 225-235 .
  11. ↑ E. Spelke, W. Hirst, U. Neisser: Skills of divided attention . Ed .: Cognition. No. 4 , 1976, p. 215-230 .
  12. ↑ W. Hirst, ES Spelke, C. Reeves, G. Caharack, U. Neisser: Dividing attention without alternation or automaticity . Ed .: Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. No. 109 , 1980, pp. 98-117 .
  13. ↑ J. Krummenacher, H.-J. Müller, T. Schubert: Attention and Action . In: Hagendorf et al (Ed.): Perception and attention: General psychology for Bachelor . Springer, Berlin / Heidelberg 2011, ISBN 978-3-642-12710-6 , pp. 208 .
  14. ↑ Multitasking: Women can't do it better either , in: Focus from June 22, 2010
  15. ↑ Bankole K. Fasanya, Maranda E. McBride, Regina Pope-Ford, Celestine Ntuen: Gender differences in auditory perception and computational divided attention tasks . In: Proceedings of the 41st International Conference on Computers & Industrial Engineering . 2011.
  16. ↑ Hiltraut M. Paridon, Marlen Kaufmann: Multitasking in work-related situations and its relevance for occupational health and safety: Effects on performance, subjective strain and physiological parameters . In: Europe's Journal of Psychology . tape 6 , no. 4 , 2010, p. 110-124 .
  17. ^ Neil M. Alperstein: Living in an age of distraction: Multitasking and simultaneous media use and the implications for advertisers . 2005, doi : 10.2139 / ssrn.1473864 .
  18. ↑ Thomas Buser, Noemi Peter: Multitasking: productivity effects and gender differences . 2011.
  19. ↑ Dongning Ren, Haotian Zhou, Xiaolan Fu: A Deeper Look at Gender Difference in Multitasking: Gender-Specific Mechanism of Cognitive Control . In: Fifth International Conference on Natural Computation . 2009.
  20. ^ Byung-Chul, Han: Müdigkeitsgesellschaft , Matthes & Seitz, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-88221-616-5 , pp. 24-26.
  21. ↑ Martin Korte: What should become of our brains? In: faz.net, April 30, 2010.
  22. ↑ English edition by William Morrow 2009. Dt. Edition: Gary Small, Gigi Vorgan: iBrain: how the new media world is changing the brain and soul of our children. 2009.
  23. ↑ Jutta Beiner: Multitasking makes employees dumber. In: welt.de, July 8, 2009.
  24. ↑ Edward M Hallowell: Overstretched, Overbooked, and About to Snap! Strategies for Handling Your Fast-Paced Life. Ballantine Books, 2007.