A recent study by researchers from the University of Texas at Austin, the University of California, San Diego and Disney Research sought to determine how just having your smartphone near you, even if you aren’t looking at it or using it, can affect you cognitively.
The researchers asked some participants to turn off their phone’s sound and vibration notifications, and some to power off their phones. They then divided the participants, asking some to place their phones in front of them, face-down, others to stow their phones in their pockets or bags and others yet to keep them in another room during the experiments. The participants who performed best on the tasks were of the latter group, followed by the ones who stowed their devices. The worst performers were the ones whose phones were on their desks during the tasks.
As for why this happens, the researchers explain that “humans learn to automatically pay attention to things that are habitually relevant to them, even when they are focused on a different task.” This is why your ears perk up when you hear someone say your name across the room, for example, even while you’re in the middle of a conversation with someone else. When you try to ignore the pull of your smartphone, you’re expending effort to suppress this urge, which is a distraction that makes you think less effectively.
There’s plenty of anecdotal and scientific evidence to prove that smartphones are detrimental to our health and well being. They’re anxiety inducing, cause car accidents and distract us from work and social bonding. But that doesn’t mean they’re inherently bad. Smartphones, of course, add efficiency, convenience and connectivity to our lives.
