Think You Can Multitask? Think Again
How many of you do your work in front of the television, or while listening to music? Do you do multiple assignments at once, juggling hobbies and assignments at the same time? Do you think you can multitask? Well, the harsh reality is, for 98% of you, multitasking is physically impossible.
I know what you’re thinking; you’re probably thinking that you’re part of the 2% who can do multiple things at once. But the truth is, studies have shown that people who think they are good at multitasking are generally worse at simultaneous thought. These people are often bad at staying focused. Thus, instead of improving their ability to focus, they delude themselves into thinking that they can productively do multiple tasks at once.
When we ‘multitask’, we are actually shifting our focus from one activity to another very quickly. There are two stages of focus in task processing—goal shifting and rule activation—both controlled by the cerebral cortex. The first stage, goal shifting, is the initial switch of focus from one task to the other. The second stage, rule activation, is where the detriments of ‘multitasking’ really come into effect. Rule activation refers to the process in which the brain moves away from the ‘rules’ needed for its current task, and activates the ‘rules’ for the task it is switching to. To simplify this process, think of these ‘rules’ as tools. To switch from fastening a screw to painting a picture, you need to put down your screwdriver and pick up your paintbrush. For your brain to switch between tasks, it needs to switch its figurative tools. How long rule activation takes depends on age and familiarity to the task—often only taking milliseconds, but the tiny delays do add up. These pauses in productivity lower efficiency by up to 40%, increases errors, and hinders creative thought.
Trying to do multiple tasks at once is taxing to the body in many other ways. Rapidly switching between tasks causes the brain to burn glucose faster, making you feel fatigued and disoriented after a short period of ‘multitasking’. People who multitasked more regularly also had smaller gray matter density, which controls autonomic bodily functions such as blood pressure and heart rate, as well as mental skills such as decision making, empathy, impulse control, and emotional regulation. Multitasking also increases the levels of stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline, which can potentially cause health problems such as narrowed arteries and suppressed immune systems.
However, it’s not like we are completely incapable of doing more than one thing at once. For instance, we can walk, hold a conversation, and look around us simultaneously. The human brain’s inability to multitask only affects high-difficulty activities; we cannot write an email and talk to someone, or listen to a conversation and play games at the same time. So the next time you’re texting while talking to a friend, or binging a show while writing your essay, think about it. Are the downsides of multitasking really worth the temporary convenience?
