ABSTRACT
Originally the term multitasking was a computer term referring to a computer's ability to run multiple programs or tasks simultaneously. Research reveals that multitasking negatively affects memory. Students who multitask make significantly more errors because the brain has difficulty trying to attend to both tasks simultaneously. Research on multitasking from neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and educational psychology reveals that multitasking is actually attention switching. Multitasking always leads to a decrease in performance—students make more errors, remember less, and take longer to complete activities. There are two stages that reliably contribute to the attentional switch cost of attempting to multitask: task-preparation and selective attention. Media multitasking is using multiple forms of media simultaneously while performing several tasks. The researchers reported that "extensive daily media multitasking directly reinforces task switching behavior and deteriorates the ability to sustain attention on a focal task". Off-task media multitasking harms learning.
