• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
  • About
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Advertise
methodshop

methodshop

tech news, reviews & how to's

  • Trending
  • Latest
  • Tech
    • Apps
    • Internet
    • Software
    • Security
    • Games
    • Advertising
  • Life
    • Entertainment
    • TV & Film
    • Music
    • Health & Science
    • Family
    • Social Media
    • Food
    • Style
  • Learn
    • Tutorials
    • Reviews
    • News
      • Business
      • Crime
      • Politics
  • Fun
    • Featured
    • Humor
    • Holiday

Home : Hi-tech is turning us all into time-wasters

Hi-tech is turning us all into time-wasters

July 21, 2008 by jayfrankwilson
FacebookTweetPinLinkedIn

Mobile phones and emails are triggering the ‘distraction’ part of the brain

Hi-Tech Is Turning Us All Into Time-Wasters - Bored2 1Time-wasting is not just an irritating habit. It is an affliction that ruins millions of lives and often requires therapy and other treatment for sufferers, psychologists have warned.

According to new research, one person in five now suffers from the problem so badly that their careers, relationships and health are threatened. Many researchers blame computers and mobile phones for providing too many distractions for people.

‘The subject is seen as joke,’ said Professor Joseph Ferrari of DePaul University in Chicago. ‘But the social and economic implications are huge. These people need therapy. They need to change the way they act and think.’

Ferrari says that chronic procrastination is now so serious a condition it needs to be recognised by clinicians. In a study to be published later this year, he estimates that 15 to 20 per cent of people are chronic procrastinators. ‘We now have data on 4,000 people, and it doesn’t seem to matter what age you are, or your sex or background.’

He has devised a questionnaire to help diagnose the condition, which he says is ‘much more common than depression or common phobias’. Procrastination also has knock-on effects – it encourages depression, lowers self-esteem, causes insomnia, and indirectly affects health by discouraging visits to the dentist or doctor. Sufferers are also more likely to have accidents at home involving unmended appliances.

Cognitive psychologist Professor John Maule, of Leeds University’s business school, agreed that a significant proportion of the population were prone to procrastination, and argued that mood changes – particularly depression – might be to blame.

Research by Professor Piers Steel from Calgary University indicates that the incidence of chronic procrastination has risen dramatically in recent decades, from one person in 20 to one in four, as new technology has come to dominate our lives. Even the beeps notifying the arrival of email are said to be causing a 0.5 per cent drop in gross domestic product in the United States, costing the economy $70bn a year.

Ferrari, however, is less convinced that new technology is to blame for time-wasting. ‘People have wasted time for centuries,’ he said. ‘Lots of people, particularly people who often have to work under time constraints, put work off because they kid themselves that they work best when under pressure, when there’s a deadline.

‘Studies have shown this isn’t true. They’re conveniently forgetting the times when it all went horribly wrong – and selectively remembering the odd occasion when things went well under severe time pressure.’

Once, humans probably did have stronger excuses for delaying chores that didn’t need immediate attention, say brain scientists such as Alan Sanfey at Arizona University, whose work has shed light on the evolutionary origins of procrastination.

It appears that the brain is divided into two parts. One triggers ‘automatic responses’ which take precedence over everything else – such as fleeing sabre-toothed tigers. The other governs ‘deliberate responses’ – writing that report due next week or booking a visit to the optician. Evolution has dictated that the former take precedence. Today there aren’t any sabre-toothed tigers, but we still put things off.

Hi-Tech Is Turning Us All Into Time-Wasters - Salvador Dali Clock 2
[Read: guardian.co.uk]


FacebookTweetPinLinkedIn
Tag: laziness, Technology
Previous Post:iPhone 3G SmartphonesBrazilians Hackers Are The First To Unlock iPhone 3G Smartphone
Next Post:Old Smashing Pumpkins Song Popular Again Thanks To Watchmen Movie Trailer (2008)Watchmen Cast: Nite Owl, Silk Spectre II, and Rorschach

Sidebar

Popular Posts

  • Job Automation Using ChatGPT Could Make These Jobs Obsolete - Is Your Job On This List?Job Automation Using ChatGPT Could Make These Jobs Obsolete – Is Your Job On…
  • The Surprising Story Behind The NBC ChimesThe Surprising Story Behind The NBC Chimes
  • 7 Pictures Of Naked People Captured By Google's Cameras7 Pictures Of Naked People Captured By Google’s Cameras
  • Top 200 Nielsen DMA Rankings (2023) – Full ListTop 200 Nielsen DMA Rankings (2023) – Full List
  • 5 Funny Resurrection Jokes To Share On Easter Sunday5 Funny Resurrection Jokes To Share On Easter Sunday
  • How To Change The Default LG TV Home Screen To Live TVHow To Change The Default LG TV Home Screen To Live TV
  • Is Your Hatch Restore Already Registered? Here's How To Fix It And Unregister A Hatch Restore.Is Your Hatch Restore Already Registered? Here’s How To Fix It And…
  • 20 Famous People Who Are Members Of The Sleepless Elite20 Famous People Who Are Members Of The Sleepless Elite
  • The Best Caddyshack Quotes: 30 Famous Caddyshack Quotes That'll Make You LaughThe Best Caddyshack Quotes: 30 Famous Caddyshack Quotes That’ll Make You Laugh
  • 30 Dirty Irish Pick Up Lines That Will Probably Get You Slapped30 Dirty Irish Pick Up Lines That Will Probably Get You Slapped

Categories

Clever Tech Gifts

10 Clever Tech Gifts That People Actually Want

Here are some clever tech gifts that your friends and family will love.

Everything Everywhere All At Once Quotes

The 40 Best Everything Everywhere All At Once Quotes

Ready to be inspired and challenged? Check out these amazing Everything Everywhere All At Once quotes that will help you see the world in a whole new light!

Recent Posts

  • The 40 Best Everything Everywhere All At Once Quotes
  • How To Manually Identify AI-Generated Text Without Using A ChatGPT Detector
  • 10 Clever Tech Gifts That People Actually Want
  • 10 Fun Things To Ask Alexa On St. Patrick’s Day
  • 30 Dirty Irish Pick Up Lines That Will Probably Get You Slapped

Jump to comments

About

MethodShop’s mission is to entertain, inform, and sometimes gross you out. MethodShop has affiliate relationships, so we may get a small share of the revenue from your purchases. Items are sold by the retailer, not by us. All prices are subject to change.

Latest

Everything Everywhere All At Once Quotes

The 40 Best Everything Everywhere All At Once Quotes

How To Visually Identify AI-Generated Text

How To Manually Identify AI-Generated Text Without Using A ChatGPT Detector

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest
MethodShop Animated Zoom Icon
  • About
  • Submit
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Store

Copyright © 2023 MethodShop · All Rights Reserved