Multitasking???
This week I had a student sent to my office because the student was watching a video not related to the subject being taught in the classroom. The student explained to me that the video helped him to relax and focus on the assignment. “Mr. House, it is called multitasking.” This made me stop and wonder, “Is this truly possible?”
I have heard people on both sides of this issue. Many people believe that with all the available technology our brains are able to focus on and accomplish many tasks at the same time. But, according to the Harvard Business Review, “We have a brain with billions of neurons and many trillion of connections, but we seem incapable of doing multiple things at the same time. Sadly, multitasking does not exist, at least not as we think about it. We instead switch tasks. Our brain chooses which information to process. For example, if you listen to speech, your visual cortex becomes less active, so when you talk on the phone to a client and work on your computer at the same time, you literally hear less of what the client is saying.”
Personally, I have tried to do several tasks at the same time, like talking on the phone and answering an email at the same time. So according to this statement, I am not truly focusing on either task but switching from one to the other. I imagine the time it takes for the brain to switch tasks and refocus is going to be unique to every individual person, which could affect the quality of the work on either task.
Thinking about the notion that multitasking is not possible, is playing music in the background a form of multitasking? Joanne Cantor Ph.D. gives the following advice if you want to listen to music while working or studying:
1. If you’re doing a repetitive task requiring focus but not much cognitive processing, you can use upbeat music to boost your energy and attentiveness.
2. Even if your task necessitates cognitive processing or creativity, you can use motivational music beforehand and during breaks.
3. With high-information-processing tasks, monotonous, Zen-like background music may sometimes promote better performance on cognitive tasks.
4. For problem-solving or highly cognitive, complex tasks, avoid typical popular music with lyrics as it will likely interfere with the quality of your work. Try rewarding yourself during breaks instead.
I am drawing two conclusions from my minimal research. First, if we want to do our best work and obtain our best possible results we need to focus on one task at a time. Second, music or sound while we are on task helps if the beat or tone are conducive with the type of task at hand.
Sources: https://hbr.org/2010/12/you-cant-multi-task-so-stop-tr