Larry D. Rosen is professor emeritus of the psychology at California State University, Dominguez Hills. He is a research psychologist with specialties in multitasking, social networking, generational differences, parenting, child and adolescent development, and neuropsychology. In his research, he and his colleagues have examined reactions to technology among more than 70,000 people in the United States and in 22 other countries. His latest book is The Distracted Mind: Ancient Brains in a High-Tech World (with Adam Gazzaley).
If you’re reading this on your computer, you might be listening to music too. Maybe you have the TV on in the background, and your phone is by your side as you wait for an important text.
Strategies to avoid the pitfalls of distractions and interruptions, improve your cognitive control, reduce goal interference, and aid your distracted mind.