Mobile phones and attention : An experimental study examining mobile phone distraction

Abstract: Mobile phones have become a natural part in our lives and with them, challenges and concerns rise. Mobile phones are designed to catch our attention, which equals unwanted distractions in many situations. Previous research is ambiguous as to in what situations mobile phones harm our attention and cause distraction. Therefore, the aim of this experiment was to examine whether the mere presence of a mobile phone or a mobile phone receiving a notification harms our attention while performing the Stroop Task Test. The experiment involved 19 participants, comprising 4 males and 15 females of various ages (M=38,84). A within-subject design experiment was used and the participants that took part in the experiment were exposed to three different conditions as they completed four rounds of the Stroop Task Test. The first and last condition was without a mobile phone, the second condition had a silent mobile phone laying in their field of vision, and in the third condition that same mobile phone received a text message notification. In order to examine the degree of distraction, this study looked at eye gaze towards the mobile phone, in addition to the response times during the test. Contrary to previous research the results of this study showed no significant difference in the participants' performance on the Stroop Task Test and eye gaze during the mobile phone conditions. This indicates that it is possible to maintain focus and attention on a cognitively demanding task for a limited time, despite the presence of someone else’s mobile phone receiving a notification.