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How Cellphones Have Changed Our Brains
The first handheld cellphone call was made 50 years ago, and since then, these devices have become an essential multi-tool that helps us run our lives. However, as our societal dependence on devices increases rapidly every year, it's worth asking: what is our reliance on these devices doing to our brains?
A recent report found that adults in the US check their phones, on average, 344 times a day – once every four minutes – and spend almost three hours a day on their devices in total. One quick phone-related task leads to a quick check of our email or social media feeds, and suddenly we've been sucked into endless scrolling.
But it's not just the use of a phone that has consequences – its mere presence can affect the way we think. In one recent study, researchers asked participants to either put their phones next to them so they were visible, nearby and out of sight, or in another room. Participants then completed a series of tasks to test their abilities to process and remember information, their problem-solving, and their focus.
They were found to perform far better when their phones were in another room instead of nearby – whether visible, powered on or not. That held true even though most of the participants claimed not to be consciously thinking about their devices. The mere proximity of a phone, it seems, contributes to "brain drain".
fullpotential.com/blog/how-cellphones-have-changed-our-br...
How Cellphones Have Changed Our Brains
The first handheld cellphone call was made 50 years ago, and since then, these devices have become an essential multi-tool that helps us run our lives. However, as our societal dependence on devices increases rapidly every year, it's worth asking: what is our reliance on these devices doing to our brains?
A recent report found that adults in the US check their phones, on average, 344 times a day – once every four minutes – and spend almost three hours a day on their devices in total. One quick phone-related task leads to a quick check of our email or social media feeds, and suddenly we've been sucked into endless scrolling.
But it's not just the use of a phone that has consequences – its mere presence can affect the way we think. In one recent study, researchers asked participants to either put their phones next to them so they were visible, nearby and out of sight, or in another room. Participants then completed a series of tasks to test their abilities to process and remember information, their problem-solving, and their focus.
They were found to perform far better when their phones were in another room instead of nearby – whether visible, powered on or not. That held true even though most of the participants claimed not to be consciously thinking about their devices. The mere proximity of a phone, it seems, contributes to "brain drain".
fullpotential.com/blog/how-cellphones-have-changed-our-br...