A common misconception among college students is that multitasking increases productivity.

Multitasking is done by other students depending on their motivations and the situation.

Reasons for students to perform media multitasking

When learners are multitasking, their limited means of processing information, especially attention processes, are rapidly used, leaving insufficient learning space.

Cognitive functioning while multitasking

•	In-class multitasking (face-to-face courses and online courses)

•	Multitasking outside of class

•	Perceptions of multitasking and self-regulation

Multitasking effects related to academic performance

Media multitasking increases media absorption by enabling students to use two or more mediums at once. As media use is largely unregulated in college, this behavior extends to this institution.

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

The term multitasking (or time sharing) was first used to describe the sharing of computing processor capacity amongst a number of distinct jobs (e.g., Denning (1971)). In the workplace today, human multitasking is a natural response to the increased demand from a growing number of competing activities. 

Multitasking

May, K.E., Elder, A.D. Efficient, helpful, or distracting? A literature review of media multitasking in relation to academic performance. Int J Educ Technol High Educ 15, 13 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-018-0096-z


Efficient, helpful, or distracting? A literature review of media multitasking in relation to academic performance

Mobile devices offer people the opportunity to get useful tasks done during time previously thought to be unusable. Because cell phones have small screens, they’re useful for short, simple tasks. The researchers in this study designed a special app, Play Write, whose purpose is to make complex editing tasks more fragmented and achievable while working on mobile devices. Results suggested that the app made participants feel more productive and less stressed, and they completed more edits on a document using the app.

Multitasking with Play Write, a mobile microproductivity writing tool

- Multitasking with Play Write, a mobile microproductivity writing tool
- Does Multitasking Improve Performance? Evidence from the Emergency Department


References to related Literature

- Multitasking with Play Write, a mobile microproductivity writing tool
- Does Multitasking Improve Performance? Evidence from the Emergency Department.



Related Literature 

•	Several contingent tasks are performed at the same time.

•	Employees constantly switch between multiple demanding and ongoing tasks in a modern work environment, impacting productivity.

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