The Art of Manliness

Get a Handle on Your Shrinking Attention Span

Feb 8, 2023

Dr. Gloria Mark, a world-renowned researcher on attention and author of Attention Span, dives into how our concentration has eroded in the digital age. She highlights the staggering decline in average attention span from two and a half minutes to just 47 seconds, largely due to multitasking and constant interruptions. Gloria explains personality influences on focus, revealing why neurotic individuals struggle more. She advocates for a balanced approach to attention, suggesting we embrace our natural rhythms rather than striving for hyper-focus.

50:17

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Episode guests

Gloria Mark

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Quick takeaways

Attention spans on screens have significantly decreased over the years, with the average attention span on a screen dropping to 47 seconds, accompanied by a rise in time spent on digital devices.

Personality traits such as neuroticism and impulsivity can impact attention span, while conscientious individuals can improve focus and productivity through strategic breaks and self-regulation.

Deep dives

Attention spans on screens have drastically shortened

According to research conducted by Dr. Gloria Mark, attention spans on screens have significantly decreased over the years. In 2004, the average attention span on a screen was two and a half minutes, but now it has dropped to an average of 47 seconds. This decrease in attention spans is accompanied by an increase in the amount of time people spend with digital devices, with Americans spending about 10 hours a day on screens. The constant switching of attention between different tasks and activities on screens has negative consequences, including decreased performance, increased errors, and heightened stress levels.

Task Switching and Mental Residue on the Whiteboard

01:07

How to Find Your Attentional Rhythm

02:51

Switching Tasks Require Reestablishing your Internal Representation of the Task

01:11

The Design of the Internet

03:56

Intro

2min

The Decline of Attention Spans in a Digital Age

18min

The Fluidity of Attention: Personality's Impact

6min

Emotions, Attention, and the Internet's Influence

6min

Digital Distractions and Attention Spans

8min

Mastering Attention: Finding Your Focus

10min

Exploring the Impact of Attention Span in Modern Life

2min

Twenty years ago, it didn't seem like a burdensome task to write a handwritten letter to a loved one. Fifteen years ago, it wasn't a big deal to write a long email to a friend. Today, it can feel hard to motivate yourself to tap out a two line response to a text.

The feeling that your attention span has been shrinking over time isn't just in your head. Research by today's guest shows that it is empirically getting shorter and shorter.

Dr. Gloria Mark is the world's preeminent researcher on attention and the author of Attention Span. If you'd like to get a handle on your diminishing powers of concentration, you have to understand how attention works, and that's what Gloria explains in the first part of our conversation. We then get into how multitasking is like drawing on and wiping off a whiteboard and why it makes us feel so frazzled. Gloria then shares the way that personality influences your attention span, including why people who are more neurotic have the shortest attention spans and why conscientious people may not want to use distraction-blocking apps. We then get into how the internet and the shot lengths of modern movies reinforce our short attention spans. In the last part of our conversation, Gloria makes the case that fighting the hindrances to our attention by trying to be focused all the time isn't possible or desirable, and that our goal should be balanced focus rather than hyper focus. She explains how to achieve that balanced focus by leaning into your unique productivity rhythm, taking breaks without guilt, and developing a sense of agency over your attention.

Resources Related to the Episode

Connect With Gloria Mark

Gloria's Website

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The Art of Manliness

Get a Handle on Your Shrinking Attention Span

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

Attention spans on screens have drastically shortened

Personality traits influence attention span

The influence of the internet and media

Balanced focus and self-regulation

Task Switching and Mental Residue on the Whiteboard

How to Find Your Attentional Rhythm

Switching Tasks Require Reestablishing your Internal Representation of the Task

The Design of the Internet

Resources Related to the Episode

Connect With Gloria Mark

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts