Purpose: The purpose of the thesis is to, through an ethnographic case study, understand 20-25 year olds‘ multitasking habits when watching TV and to create a framework of the distractions identified for media consumption. Background: The changes in technology and the new possibilities of consuming media creates a need to understand how people in the ages of 20-25 consume media. Advertising on TV is, in Swe-den, the marketing channel that companies spend the largest amount of money on. Most of the statistics regarding viewing rates are collected in a way that might not give totally accu-rate picture of the actual TV viewing of the consumers. Therefore, it is necessary to do an in-depth study of the media consumption habits of this group. Method: The study will be conducted, through an ethnographic case study where the researchers ob-serve a sample of four people in the target group during 10 sessions. Each session will be two hours long, and during, the researchers will observe the group‘s media consumption habits when watching TV. The observers will also look at the multitasking habits of the group, what media and distractions are combined while watching TV. Conclusions: The researchers conclude that multitasking is a common occurrence in the target groups media consumption. The authors have identified four categories that distracts the viewer‘s focus from TV commercials. The first three are distractions being, social, media and non-media distractions. The fourth category is technical avoidance, where people tend to switch channels or mute the sound in order to avoid commercials. Further, an important factor af-fecting the level of multitasking was whether the TV viewing was planned or unplanned. It was observed that this had an effect on the level of commercial avoidance when watching TV. Finally, four different models have been created as a framework to help marketers un-derstand the consumers behavior. / Syfte: Syftet med avhandlingen är att, genom en etnografisk fallstudie, förstå 20-25 åringars multi-tasking vanor när de tittar på TV och att modeller för distraktioner som identifierats för mediekonsumtion. Bakgrund: De tekniska förändringarna och de nya möjligheterna för på vilka sätt media kan konsume-ras skapar ett behov av att förstå hur människor i åldrarna 20-25 konsumerar media. Re-klam på TV är i Sverige den marknadsföringskanal som företagen spenderar mest pengar på. De mesta av statistiken om tittarsiffror samlas på ett sätt som inte kan ge helt korrekt bild av det faktiska TV-tittande för konsumenterna, och därför är det nödvändigt att göra en fördjupad studie av mediekonsumtion vanorna för denna grupp. Metod: Studien kommer att genomföras genom en etnografisk fallstudie, där forskarna observerar ett urval av fyra personer i målgruppen under 10 separata tillfällen i objektets hem. Detta för att skapa en så naturlig miljö som möjligt. Varje observation kommer att vara i två timmar och under dessa observationer kommer forskarna studera objektens mediekonsum-tion vanor när de tittar på TV. Författarna kommer även att observera gruppens multita-sking vanor under TV tittandet, tillsammans med vilka media och distraktioner som kom-bineras i detta sammanhang. Slutsats: Författarna drar slutsatsen att multitasking är en vanlig företeelse i målgruppens mediekon-sumtion. Fyra kategorier är identifierade som distraherar tittarens fokus från TV reklam. De tre första kategorierna distraktioner nämligen social, media och övriga distraktioner. Den fjärde kategorin är tekniska åtgärder för att undvika reklam. En viktig faktor som på-verkar nivån av multitasking var om TV-tittandet var planerat eller oplanerat, och det kon-staterades att detta hade inverkan på nivån av kommersiell undvikelse när de tittade på TV. Författarna har skapat fyra modeller som kan användas för att underlätta för marknadsföra-re att förstå och nå denna målgrupp.

A study by Ophir, Nass & Wagner found that younger adults who are heavy media multitaskers (HMM) perform worse on cognitive measures assessing inhibitory control. Previous findings indicated no benefit to being an HMM, however extrapolating from the aging literature wherein older adults can use distraction beneficially, the authors hypothesized that HMMs might show parallel gains. Two tasks (Reading with Distraction, and the Flanker task) are reported with regard to trait media multitasking preference in undergraduates. As expected, LMMs generally outperformed HMMs, but less consistently than predicted. The hypothesis was not proven; media multitaskers, while 4x more likely to recognize the implicit nature of the task, were not more likely to use previously distracting information suggesting that a different mechanism is operating in HMMs than older adults who readily use this information.

A study by Ophir, Nass & Wagner found that younger adults who are heavy media multitaskers (HMM) perform worse on cognitive measures assessing inhibitory control. Previous findings indicated no benefit to being an HMM, however extrapolating from the aging literature wherein older adults can use distraction beneficially, the authors hypothesized that HMMs might show parallel gains. Two tasks (Reading with Distraction, and the Flanker task) are reported with regard to trait media multitasking preference in undergraduates. As expected, LMMs generally outperformed HMMs, but less consistently than predicted. The hypothesis was not proven; media multitaskers, while 4x more likely to recognize the implicit nature of the task, were not more likely to use previously distracting information suggesting that a different mechanism is operating in HMMs than older adults who readily use this information.

I och med ny medieteknik samt en allt mer uppkopplad och stressad värld har det blivit vanligare med multitasking. Tidigare forskning visar att 90 procent av befolkningen multitaskar någon gång varje dag. Detta trots att multitasking visats leda till både stress och försämrad prestationsförmåga i de aktiviteter man arbetar med, särskilt i samband med inlärning. Samtidigt har tidigare forskning visat att träning förbättrar flera funktioner i hjärnan kopplat till inlärning. I denna studie undersöktes om multitasking, träning samtidigt som inlärning, kan utnyttjas för att förbättra inlärningen. 14 studenter deltog i en experimentell studie där två lika stora grupper fick lyssna på en podcast antingen springandes eller sittandes och sedan besvara ett test bestående av 13 frågor om podcastens ämne. Resultatet visar att skillnaden i inlärning från podcast mellan deltagare som suttit eller sprungit medan de lyssnat på podcasten är liten. Studiens resultat indikerar på en viss fördel för gruppen som satt still under testet då de i medeltal fick tio rätt på testet om podcastens ämne medan motsvarande siffra var nio för deltagarna som sprang. Men med tanke på antalet deltagare i studien är skillnaden inte tillräckligt stor för att dra slutsatsen att inlärning under träning påverkas negativt. / Since the evolution of new media technology together with a continuously more connected and stressed world, multitasking has become more common. Previous research shows that 90 percent of the population multitask at least once a day. However, it also shows that multitasking leads to stress and impaired performance in the activities you work with, especially learning activities. With reason in research, that shows that training enhances several functionalities in the brain connected with learning, an experiment study with 14 participants was conducted to examine how learning is affected during running. The participants in this study were students at the degree program in media technology at the Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. The study used an experimental method with a control group and an experiment group; the control group sitting while listening to the podcast and the experiment group running while listening. The study shows that the difference in learning, from podcast, between the participants in the control group and the participators in the experiment group was modest. The results also indicate a small advantage for the control group, but it was not large enough to draw the conclusion that running affected the learning negatively. We instead assesses it as likely that the result is a consequence of a combination of multitasking affecting learning negatively, while training affecting it positively.

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The aims of this dissertation study are 1) to examine how the interplay of motivation, artifacts, and task interconnectedness affect users' flow experience, 2) to understand users' multitasking patterns by analyzing approaches and strategies in multitasking environments through a participatory design session, and 3) to come up with design insights and implications for desired multitasking environments based on findings from the quantitative and qualitative data analysis and synthesis. This dissertation employed the PAT (Person-Artifact-Task) model to examine factors that affect users' flow experience in computer-mediated multitasking environments. Particularly, this study focused on users' flow experience - sense of control, focused attention, curiosity, intrinsic interest and interactivity - in the context of multitasking. The dissertation begins with perspectives on human multitasking research from various disciplines. Emphasis is placed on how researchers have defined the term multitasking and the scope of previous multitasking research. In addition, this study provides definitions of the term task switching, which also has been used to describe human multitasking. The second section of this dissertation focuses on the literature, which characterizes factors and theoretical frameworks of human multitasking research. In this section, human multitasking factors were classified into internal and external factors to analyze factors from the micro to the macro perspective. More detailed definitions and comparisons are also addressed. To summarize and conclude the literature review, this study provides a synthesis framework of internal and external factors of human multitasking contexts. In section III, this dissertation introduces theoretical frameworks that include the constructs of the PAT (Person-Artifact-Task) model and flow model. The next three sections present the research design and two research methods - the experiment and participatory design. The results and discussion section includes the implications of interpreting people's flow experience with motivation, artifact (technology affordance type), and task interconnectedness through the PAT model. The study findings and implications should extend our understanding of multitasking behaviors and contexts and how the interplay of person, artifact, and task factors affects humans' flow experience. A concluding chapter explores future work and design implications on how researchers and designers can take contextual factors into consideration to identify the most effective multitasking in computer-mediated environments. / text

The increase in student cell phone use in classrooms has led to a decrease in academic performance and satisfaction with instruction (Dietz & Henrich, 2014). Currently, it is unknown as to whether student classroom cell phone usage has any effect on the teacher. The purpose of this study was to determine student and teacher opinions of classroom cell phone usage and perceived distraction. Surveys were conducted with a sample of college students (N = 163) and college faculty (N = 289), from a university in the Southeastern region of the United States. Data indicate there are differing opinions on classroom cell phone usage between students and teachers. Results revealed teachers believe significantly more than students that cell phones should not be used during class. A majority of teachers also reported they have been distracted by students using their phones, while only about half of the students believe their teachers have been distracted by cell phones. Students using cell phones during class may affect more than just their individual academic performance; student cell phone use may actually have a negative impact on the entire class and the quality of teaching.

The impact of instant message interruptions via computer on immediate lecture retention for college students was examined. While watching a 24–minute video of a classroom lecture, students received various numbers of related–to–lecture (“Is consistent use of the eye contact method necessary for success?”) versus not–related–to lecture (“Have you ever missed class because you couldn't find parking?”) instant messages in addition to note taking vs. no note taking. Student self–rating for multitasking ability, typical and maximum instant messaging activity, and classroom computer use were also measured. Contrary to cognitive models of information processing that suggest instant messages will disrupt student retention of lecture information, no effects were found for number of interruptions, presence or absence of notes, or relatedness of interruption on lecture retention. Students’ multitasking self–rating was negatively related to lecture retention. The implications of these results for classroom practice and future research are explored. / text

The use of portable digital devices in the United States is increasing. With this increase in digital technology use comes an increase in interruptions between digital users. This study explores whether interruptions caused by a digital device evoke an emotion from members of the Millennial generation. In addition, this research aims to determine whether an interruption during a task causes a reduction in task efficiency amongst Millennials. The findings from this study can provide corporations and educational institutions with information about how portable digital technologies might affect the productivity of Millennial employees and students. / Department of Telecommunications

Idag tar människan del av mer information än någonsin, inte minst den yngre generationen. Det konstanta flödet som tas del av påverkar individen och försätter denne i ett beroende där det blir till ett behov att svara på meddelanden, att hänga med i sammanhanget och att vara delaktig. Till slut överbelastas människan både psykiskt och fysiskt av den informationen som måste tolkas. Man skulle kunna påstå att det är ett samhällsproblem, det är en norm att ha många fler vänner i den digitala världen än i verkligheten. Det är inte ens möjligt att hantera alla dessa relationer som förekommer i sociala medier. Idag är det också en norm att ta fram smartphonen så fort möjligheten finns. Notiser och aviseringar från sociala medier distraherar och får individen att tappa fokus. Att hantera många olika praktiker samtidigt är inte ett positivt resultat då detta benämns som multitasking och hindrar individen från att hantera någonting på en djup nivå, vilket i sin tur bidrar till kognitiv överbelastning. Det problematiska är huruvida unga svenskar är medvetna angående det omfattande användandet av sociala medier. Denna uppsats har därför som syfte att först och främst utreda hur användandet bland unga svenskar ser ut idag men också att markera bidragande konsekvenser. Att undersöka varför unga svenskar använder sociala medier samt hur de tolkar sitt användande blir därför relevanta grundpelare. Från de respondenter som svarat på denna undersökning som genomförts kan vi konstatera att majoriteten är kvinnor, 24 år och uppskattar att de är aktiva i sociala medier runt 2 timmar om dagen. De enheter som används till sociala medier blir allt fler men smartphonen dominerar. Resultatet från denna undersökning visade att det finns en medvetenhet i den mån att sociala medieanvändare vet om att informationen som vidhålls genom sociala medier inte är relevant eller viktig. Dock anser de att de inte är drabbade av problematiken då de endast använder sociala medier som ett tidsfördriv.