Multitasking
ICT usage is deeply woven into the texture of workplace culture. One related feature of this new work pattern, which I did not explore in my own study, is the increasing likelihood of performing activities contemporaneously. Multitasking is the final aspect of work intensification that I want to consider here.
As I outlined in the previous chapter, time pressure can take a variety of forms, depending on which aspect of temporality is being squeezed. In addition to the volume of time available and the problem of temporal coordination, I introduced the concept of temporal density. This describes the experiences of juggling and multitasking, that is, the distribution of certain practices within temporal rhythms that create a sense of intensity in their conduct. I discussed temporal density in the context of the time-use literature that charts how working parents, especially mothers, juggle their paid work and domestic tasks. We saw significant growth in parents combining leisure with child care and I speculated that this might afect the distinctive quality of leisure time.
Research on multitasking with digital technologies is in its infancy. High levels of multitasking at work, however, are directly linked to ICT use.35 Multitasking is seen as an eficient way of dealing with interruptions, integrating them into workflow and thus saving time. For example, using e-mail while teleconferencing or attending a lecture has become commonplace. It is justified on the basis that people are able to pay attention to any number of tasks simultaneously.
But several studies indicate that multitasking may actually impair performance. Ironically, “heavy” media multitaskers are more susceptible to distractions and perform worse on cognitive tasks than “light” multitaskers.36 So increasing one’s amount of ICT-based multitasking does not improve ability to master it. In general, the literature on multitasking points to negative outcomes: reduced cognition or performance (even among “digital natives”) or rising work-related strain. Psychologists confirm that humans are incapable of giving their full attention to two tasks simultaneously.37 What people actually do is switch their attention from one task or platform to the next, and such task switching leads to a host of issues, including attention dificulties, poor decision making, and information overload.
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