Multitasking behavior

Abstract

This chapter does not attempt to furnish an overview of multitasking research in every scientific discipline. Rather, we highlight the impor- tance of multitasking in the cognitive and information sciences and the need for further research on multitasking, particularly within the con- text of information behavior. Why are we interested in multitasking? Why is multitasking an important theoretical and practical phenomenon for the cognitive and information sciences, and particularly for theories and models of information behavior? Multitasking has no doubt always been an essential human behavior. However, unlike earlier research on micro- analyses of brain and memory structure/capacity (Miller, 1956), mul- titasking pushes brain and memory research into a more global consideration of human existence. Reasons for our increased interest in the phenomenon are societys heightened interest in security con- cerns, the evolution of a workplace with workers now required to per- form tasks formerly performed by others, and above all the pervasiveness of communication devices in both work and leisure activities. Citations to multitasking research in the cognitive sciences have recently appeared in the popular press. The ubiquity of digital devices such as mobile phones, messaging devices, video games, and desktop and laptop computers has helped create the impression that todays young people behave differently from previous generations in their simultaneous use of multiple devices, with the result that attention is diverted from the task at hand (Scott, 2006). In response to the numer- ous published studies indicating the negative effects of telephone use on automobile driver performance (Strayer & Johnston, 2001), many local and state governments have adopted laws to curtail this kind of multi- tasking behavior. Employers and organizational behaviorists are also concerned about multitasking in work environments, in part because of the proliferation of information devices (Holstein, 2006). They ask ques- tions such as: How can we keep employees focused? (Hafner, 2005). Citing former Microsoft Vice President Linda Stones (2006) phrase con- tinuous partial attention, New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman (2006) labels our multitasking age The Age of Interruption. However, we start by considering multitasking as a human ability; the ability to handle the competing demands of multiple tasks. A task is defined as a distinct work activity carried out for a distinct purpose (Cascio, 1978, p. 133). Multitasking can be defined narrowly or broadly. For example, is multitasking the human ability to deal with more than one task at the same time, or is multitasking actually the ability to switch quickly from one task to the next in a rapid sequence of tasks? We here define multitasking broadly. Waller (1997, p. 225) states that indi- vidual-level multitasking processes involve a persons allocation of his or her own scarce cognitive resources among several tasks and the moder- ating impact of task elements, task processes, and task resources on individual multiple-task performance. Multitasking occurs at different levels of human behavior, including the individual and group levels (Waller, 1997). When humans multitask, they work on two or more tasks and switch between those tasks, either as individuals or within groups (Waller, 1997). Multitasking and task switching are mechanisms that help humans deal with the complex environment in which they live. People often switch among different types of tasks such as talking on the telephone, computing, reading, and information seeking. There is a growing and crucial need to extend our understanding of multitasking behavior, particularly within the context of cognitive and information behavior. In spite of the importance of multitasking in the cognitive sciences, until recently the field of information science devoted limited attention to understanding multitasking within the context of the fields research issues and problems. Previous ARIST chapters on information behavior touched only parenthetically on multitasking (e.g., multitasking will increase as a result of increased collaboration in the work environment Foster, 2006; see also, Courtrights 2007 chapter on information use environments; Davenport 2002 on distributed cognition; Finholt 2002 on the organization of work; Garcia, Dawes, Kohne, Miller, and Groschwitz 2006 on the workplace and technological change; Jones 2007 on management of tasks; Rogers 2004 on humancomputer interaction HCI; and Vakkari 2003 on task-based information searching). However, recently, multitasking research has grown in theoretical and practical significance for information scientists. Multitasking is emerging as a fundamental process that underpins information behavior. As with other information science concepts, such as relevance, uncertainty, or feedback, multitasking is now an important and complex concept that is crucial if we are to understand information behavior fully. The purpose of this chapter is to develop a framework for clarifying the relationship between information behavior and multitasking. Because cognitive science research affects information behavior studies, we first outline multitasking concepts and models within the cognitive sciences, broadly defined.

Cite this document ^(BETA)