The Dangers of Multitasking

Digital devices pervade every aspect of our lives. Technology is all around us. From cell phones to iPods to mobile GPS devices and DVD players in our cars. We have technology at our fingertips, in front of our faces, or within hand or arm reach at all times in our lives. At work we have computers, and access to email and other applications which have been seen to improve our production because we are now able to multi-task - or so we would think. I began writing this post at 5:35 PM, and when I began, it was with the intent to see how many interruptions I could record, and how those interruptions and distractions would affect the final time of the post. Ordinarily I will work through a task only stopping to check an email when the email notification indicates that it is from someone whom I know has something important for me at that moment, otherwise, my email can generally wait for an hour or so while I work on what is at hand. In the last hour I have checked so-called "important" emails 4 times, and have responded to 3. Instant messages are a different matter. I received an IM from Hoodlumman about 20 minutes ago and it has badly distracted me. I spent at least five minutes looking at these images of Lindsay Lohan rather than getting to the point of where the inspiration for this little piece came from (Mind you, this is not all presented in the order things occurred. I have rearranged text to keep a certain point I'm making to the end. This post was outlined before it was written. Also to help with proving the point). Now, the pics didn't distract me too long from the initial viewing, but each time I think of them it adds a few moments distraction to the effort of writing this post. The point that I'm trying to make, is that in writing this post, I have been interrupted by every sort of office interruption you can imagine. From the personal call to the professional call, from the IM to the email, and this hour almost two hour process of multi-tasking has implications outside the office. Every time I have been interrupted I have had at least a few moments of trying to "remember where I was" in the process. Now, to the inspiration for this post.... I read an article in the New York Times which discussed the dangers and problems associated with multitasking. This article made me think first about the dangers from technology in my life. I am an avid motorcyclist when I am home and able to ride as often as I like, and everything from cell phones to PDAs in use by drivers in cars have become a danger to me. Consider this, from the New York Times article: Study participants were given two tasks and were asked to respond to sounds and images. The first was to press the correct key on a computer keyboard after hearing one of eight sounds. The other task was to speak the correct vowel after seeing one of eight images. The researchers said that they did not see a delay if the participants were given the tasks one at a time. But the researchers found that response to the second task was delayed by up to a second when the study participants were given the two tasks at about the same time. In many daily tasks, of course, a lost second is unimportant. But one implication of the Vanderbilt research, Mr. Marois said, is that talking on a cellphone while driving a car is dangerous. A one-second delay in response time at 60 miles an hour could be fatal, he noted. Now, consider another oddity of the modern era. I don't only place overuse of technology as a problem for cagers. I consider myself a part of the problem. I have a heavy touring motorcycle. My bike is equipped with the following gadgets that many folks wouldn't think of: 4-speaker stereo with in dash CD player (no I wouldn't consider changing CDs whild riding) CB/intercom Weather band GPS Now some might think that is too much already, but consider that the stereo can be upgraded to include Bluetooth connectivity for a cell phone and XM or Sirius satellite radio. The distractions possible just on my bike alone are every bit as dangerous as those available to the deadliest cager. Nevermind the helmet adapters that Nolan just released which include Blackberry support. I have seen all manner of activity which have the effect of making life more, not less, dangerous, from reading the newspaper while driving, using a laptop while commuting, putting on makeup, etc, and it amazes me that more of us aren't dead on the streets. The point, is that multi-tasking is dangerous, and it appears it may not make us more productive at all. And a final note: When I finished writing this post one of my employees came in to ask some questions, and I forgot that I hadn't pressed the Publish button. This post took over two hours to write and post including all of the distractions.