• Work schedules are one of the essential factors affecting productivity

• In comparison to sequential execution, multitasking significantly decreases performance.

• Subjects who could choose the amount and timing of their switches freely did only marginally better than those forced to switch at unanticipated points in time. They perform significantly worse than those working under the exogenously imposed sequential schedule.


Schedule

There is a negative correlation between performance and the number of switches, which is not suitable for self-imposed work schedules.

Number of switches

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

•	In comparison to sequential execution, multitasking significantly lowers performance. As a result, switching with its associated costs, including recalling the actions, rules and details performed so far, outweighs the benefits of receiving a fresh perspective.

•	There was only a marginal improvement in performance for subjects who were free to choose when and how to switch, and they performed significantly worse than those who were forced to change at unpredictable points in time. This study adds a new dimension to the debate over centralizing decision-making by showing subjects perform worse under self-selected work schedules.

•	There is no gender difference in productivity when multitasking.


Findings 

Buser, T., & Peter, N. (2012). Multitasking. Experimental Economics : A Journal of the Economic Science Association, 15(4), 641-655.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10683-012-9318-8

Multitasking

Factors that affect productivity.

The evidence shows that the only gender difference is men switch tasks more than women.

Propensity to multitask in gender

Decision-making may take away resources from a worker’s actual tasks, and workers may not be able to schedule their own work optimally.

Learn Before

Related

Learn After