Technology And Multitasking Essay

Effect of Technology and Multitasking on Work Performance

Technology, regardless of its advancement or simplicity, has been around for centuries. It has made an incredible impact on today’s society in a multitude of ways. Since the world of technology has broadened to the extent that life without a cell phone, computer, or television would be life not living for, technology has essentially become the basis of life. It has impacted society’s ability to increase the pace we work at or reduce the efficiency in the amount of tasks we succeed in completing. Although technology has made an extreme advancement over the years, and with that, has increased in the vast role it plays in society, these advancements cause problems. The use of cell phones, for instance has dramatically increased since the first cell phone was invented by Martin Cooper in 1973 on April 3 (Martin), to the newest version of the iPhone, the 5s (Kerris). In the past, cell phones were generally used as a device that helped people get into touch with others. It was an optional device to have, and wasn’t a “necessity” the way it is today. Now, as years have progressed, the cell phone has become a vital accessory and society has become reliant on it, and ultimately, technology as a whole. Cell phones are no longer used for solely contact purposes; it has expanded to a world where
anything can be accessed via cell phone. It is presented in an article called "Facebook and academic performance", by Paul Kirschner and his colleague, Aryn Karpinski that when people are needed to complete a certain task and to focus entirely on it, they can be easily distracted by their cell phones.
Researchers Ophira, Nass, and Wagner state that moving in-between different tasks causes a higher chance of inefficiency in the performance of each task individually; more mistakes are made, and the time it takes to complete these tasks increases heavily (qtd. in Kirschner 1238). This can be caused by how attached society has become to the technology they
own. Few people have the willpower to block out the pull technology has put on them. However, the majority of our society cannot handle the overwhelming amount of technology and real world work that is thrown at them. Multitasking, for instance appears to help people accomplish tasks quickly. In most cases, the quality of work isn 't as high as it would be if a person focused all their attention on one task at a time. According to the American Psychological Association, juggling two or more tasks at a time, can dramatically decrease efficiency and can ultimately cause a person to make more mistakes (qtd. in Kirschner 1238). A person working on two or more tasks, for example will most likely be uncommitted to each individual task because the focus is shifting from one to the other, thus putting a decrease on productivity. Kirschner and Karpinski explain that social networking or texting through phones can easily distract people from their work or even when they drive. According to scientists Strayer, Drews, and Crouch, an experiment was performed that allowed people to communicate on their cell phones while driving. They compared drivers that communicated on their phones, to drivers that were intoxicated. The studies showed that the results were similar in that braking times were delayed, and focus was not entirely on the road (qtd. in Kirschner 1239). This experiment shows that multitasking can potentially be dangerous and is heavily distracting. Facebook use, for instance, has dramatically increased over the past three or four years, thus increasing society 's time spent online. According to a researcher, Vanden Boogart, students with low grade point averages generally spend more time browsing Facebook (qtd. in Kirschner 1240). Kirschner and Karpinski conducted an experiment where they compared the results of students mean grade point averages to whether or not they were Facebook users. It was found that Facebook users had a lower mean grade point average, and studied fewer hours per week than non Facebook users who alternatively maintained a higher grade point average and found more time to study (1243). In addition, there is an assumption that technology associates with education, creating a positive effect on the rise of technology. However, according to Huntley et al., there is no relationship between the amount of time spent at home on the computer and the grade point average of students (qtd. in Kirschner 1240). It was found by researchers Lei and Zhao, that technology that was meant to increase academic performance was "not popular [amongst students] and used less frequently" (qtd. in Kirschner 1240). This shows that regardless of an immense increase in advancements of technology that are generally aimed for academic purposes, technology will still most likely be used for sites that involve social networking, like "IM and chat rooms" (Kubey, Lavin, and Barrows, qtd. in Kirschner 1240). Overall, a limitless quantity of time has been spent entirely on technology, and it will only escalate more as years continue. People have become incredibly dependent on any piece of technology they can get their hands on. Eventually, technology will play a role, no matter how miniscule, in everything that society does.

Works Cited

Kerris, Natalie. "First Weekend IPhone Sales Top Nine Million, Sets New Record." Apple Press Info. N.p, n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2013.
Kirschner, Paul A., and Aryn C. Karpinski. "Facebook® and Academic Performance." Facebook® and Academic Performance. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Sept. 2013
"Martin Cooper - History of Cell Phone." About.com Inventors. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Sept. 2013.