The Feasibility of Attention Training for Reducing Mind-Wandering and Digital Multitasking in High Schools

Alissa J Mrazek,Kyle Wong,Daniel I Garcia,Arianna C Kirk,Margaret G Ding,Alex M Delegard,Jonathan W Schooler,Alex P Landry,Erika E Kodama,Miel J Krauss,Michael D Mrazek,Crystal A Stokes,Jenna E Greenstein,Kyla D Wickens,Peter C Carr

doi:10.3390/educsci10080201

Alissa J Mrazek, Kyle Wong + Show 13 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci10080201

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Abstract

During academic activities, adolescents must manage both the internal distraction of mind-wandering and the external distraction of digital media. Attention training has emerged as a promising strategy for minimizing these distractions, but scalable interventions that can deliver effective attention training in high schools are still needed. The present investigation used a one-group pre-post design to examine the feasibility and outcomes of a digital attention training course at a public high school. The intervention was delivered with reasonably strong fidelity of implementation, with students completing 92% of the lessons and 79% of the daily exercises. At baseline, students reported mind-wandering more frequently during class than they multitasked, and mind-wandering was more negatively correlated with classroom focus. From pre-test to post-test (n = 229), students reported improved emotional regulation and reduced mind-wandering during daily life. Among the 76% of students who felt they paid attention in class less than they should, classroom focus improved significantly. During class, these students reported significantly less mind-wandering but slightly greater digital multitasking. During homework, they reported significantly less digital multitasking but only marginally reduced mind-wandering. Collectively, these results suggest that online interventions could be a scalable way of providing attention training in high schools, but that future work must consider the role of both mind-wandering and digital multitasking.

Highlights

Attention is an essential basis of learning
A recent study found that this course could be delivered with reasonably high fidelity of implementation in a high school setting while highlighting a variety of preliminary positive outcomes, including improved emotional regulation and greater classroom focus among students who reported at baseline that they focused in class less than they should [21]
Existing research indicates that attention training can lead to positive outcomes in high school settings, research has yet to establish the feasibility and effectiveness of attention training interventions that are delivered digitally

Summary

Introduction

Attention is an essential basis of learning. To focus during academic activities, students must filter through a tremendous amount of distracting information coming from both the external environment and their own minds. Additional research in school settings is needed, a growing body of evidence suggests that this form of attention training can reduce mind-wandering, enhance performance of academic tasks, improve emotional regulation, and promote greater mental health [16,17,18]. A recent study found that this course could be delivered with reasonably high fidelity of implementation in a high school setting while highlighting a variety of preliminary positive outcomes, including improved emotional regulation and greater classroom focus among students who reported at baseline that they focused in class less than they should [21] This initial study was promising, replicating findings is a crucially important part of advancing scientific understanding and earning the trust of educators and policy makers [22,23]. Because Finding Focus currently includes detailed instruction on managing internal distractions but no explicit instruction on managing external distractions of digital media, we had no specific hypotheses about the effect of the intervention on digital multitasking

Materials and Methods

Goal 1

Goal 2

Discussion