Having your mobile in front of you makes you less intelligent; even if it is off . This is the surprising conclusion of the study carried out by researchers at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin (USA) and reported in the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research.
How is it possible? The experts carried out several experiments with around 800 smartphone users in order to measure how we perform performing tasks or tests when we have the mobile nearby, even when it is off.
In one experiment, researchers asked participants to sit at a computer and perform a series of tests that required full concentration in order to obtain good results. The tests were aimed at measuring the available cognitive capacity of the participants, that is, the ability of the brain to store and process data at a specific time. Before starting, the participants had to place their smartphones either on their own desk but face down, in their pocket, in their purse or in another room. Everyone had to silence their mobiles.
The researchers found that participants who had l os mobile in another room far exceeded all others but especially those who had the mobile face down on the desk, at your fingertips.
The findings suggest that the mere presence of a smartphone reduces available cognitive ability and impairs cognitive functioning , even though the participants felt they were completely focused and focused on the tests.
“We see a linear trend that suggests that as the smartphone becomes more visible, the available cognitive ability of the participants decreases. Their conscious mind is not thinking about their phone, but that process, the process of demanding that they not think about something, it uses some of its limited cognitive resources, it is a brain drain “, clarifies Adrian Ward, leader of the work.
The authors found that it did not matter if someone else’s mobile was on or off, or if they were face up or face down on a desk, having a mobile in view or within easy reach reduced a person’s ability to concentrate. and perform tasks.
“It was not that the participants were distracted because they received notifications on their phones. The mere presence of their smartphone was enough to reduce their cognitive ability, ” concludes Ward.
Reference: Adrian F. Ward et al. Brain Drain: The Mere Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity, Journal of the Association for Consumer Research (2017). DOI: 10.1086 / 691462
