Smartphones reduce attention and performance - even when they are not there

25.09.2023 16:22

The extent to which smartphones reduce attention and memory performance has been known since 2017 as the brain drain effect. A research team from the University of Augsburg led by school educator Prof. Dr. In a meta-analysis recently published in the journal Behavioral Sciences, Klaus Zierer compared 22 studies and confirmed the effect. This poses a particular challenge, especially for media education of children and young people.

Much more serious than the uncontrolled use of smartphones, however, is an effect that research calls the brain drain effect. Klaus Zierer, Chair of School Education, explains: “The brain drain effect goes back to the study of the same name by Ward and colleagues from 2017, which was the first to prove that the mere presence of a smartphone reduces both attention and memory performance .”

As is often the case in psychological research, these results could not be replicated one-to-one, raising the question of whether the brain drain effect really exists or not. This research question is therefore being addressed by a working group led by Prof. Dr. Klaus Zierer in a recently published meta-analysis “Does the Brain Drain Effect Really Exist?”

The mere physical presence of the smartphone influences cognitive performance

To do this, they looked for international studies that dealt with this effect. They found 22 such studies, which confirm what Ward and colleagues had already found in 2017: The mere physical presence of the smartphone influences the cognitive performance of its owners, albeit differently: memory performance and attention are more affected than completing simple performance tests , for example spelling. It is also interesting that cultural differences can be found in the studies. In Asia, for example, the negative effects are even more pronounced than in North America and Europe. Zierer sees one reason for the divergent results in the ever-increasing and spreading dependency mechanisms: “People who already spend a lot of time with their smartphone are now even more stressed by the absence of the smartphone than by its presence.”

General bans are particularly helpful in schools

This result is particularly relevant for education and upbringing, as children and young people use smartphones particularly intensively. The Augsburg researchers of the meta-analysis, Tobias Böttger, Michael Poschik and Klaus Zierer, come to a clear recommendation on this question: The use of digital media must be regulated, controlled and accompanied for educational reasons. Media education must therefore encompass two perspectives: “On the one hand, children in particular must be protected from uncontrolled use of smartphones in terms of content and time.” General bans, especially in schools, are also helpful for this, as UNESCO recently did in its Global Education Monitoring Report (2023). have addressed. This should particularly include primary schools, but also the lower levels of secondary schools. “On the other hand, school concepts must be developed,” argues the Augsburg research group in their article, “that introduce young people to the use of smartphones with a sense of proportion and focus on a high degree of self-reflection and personal responsibility.” This also requires teachers Not only technical knowledge, but above all knowledge about the distraction potential of smartphones and their influence on memory, attention and general cognitive performance. “It would be irresponsible to transfer the naive use of digital media into educational contexts without reflection,” emphasizes Zierer.

Original publication:
Böttger, T.; Poschik, M.; Zierer, K. Does the Brain Drain Effect Really Exist? A meta-analysis. Behavior Sci. 2023, 13, 751. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs13090751