The Impact of Multitasking on Cognitive Performance

Overview

Multitasking is often assumed to enhance productivity, especially among students who divide their attention between academic work and digital media. This study examined how different forms of multitasking influence cognitive performance by measuring completion time and accuracy during academic-style tasks. Twenty student participants completed three sets of twenty equivalent math problems under three conditions: a focused condition without distractions, a multitasking condition involving background music and phone notifications, and a cognitive noise condition in which participants responded to verbal questions while working. Completion time and number of errors were recorded and compared across conditions. Participants required the most time to complete tasks during the cognitive noise condition, with completion time increasing by approximately 12.8% compared to the focused condition. Accuracy remained relatively consistent between the focused and multitasking conditions, while a slight decrease was observed during cognitive noise.These findings suggest that interruptions requiring active responses increase cognitive load and reduce efficiency, likely due to the need for task switching, whereas passive background stimulation has minimal impact on performance.

Competition history

• CSEF 2026 Behavioral & Social Sciences (Senior Division) · Entry S-03-06

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