Published on
Updated
Reading 2 mins.
in collaboration with
Johanna Rozenblum (clinical psychologist)
Applications, weather, news… Push notifications have invaded our smartphones and regularly grab our attention. Researchers have studied the phenomenon and realized that the use of a smartphone disrupts concentration and creates alterations in brain activity that makes it more sensitive to push notifications.
Unless we separate ourselves from our phone, we are all tempted to take a look at our screen regularly, throughout the day. On average once every fifteen minutes… and even more in the event of notifications, whether news, social networks or Whatsapp… It then becomes very difficult to concentrate, especially when we work.
Interruptions that can be anxiety-provoking
Receiving a notification on your phone therefore has these cerebral consequences. It’s a kind of outside call, which can quickly condition us to constantly check his phone. So many interruptions that can affect the quality of concentration, work and create a kind of distraction, which disrupts productivity.
Not to mention the fact that we can feel stressed by the need to respond and ultimately be subject to the fear of missing something (or FOMO in English for Fear of missing out).
Those who use their smartphone a lot are more affected
And the most frightening thing is that this phenomenon seems to be self-perpetuating. Indeed, a study published in 2016 observed the effect of push messages depending on the use of the smartphone of its owner.
Those who spend more time on their smartphone are also those who are the most sensitive to these notifications and also take the longest to refocus, compared to people who use their phone little.
Good in your body, good in your head!
Brain conditioning is responsible for this situation, because putting your phone on silent is not enough to make this behavior disappear. What is needed is to form new habits. And since new ways of doing things take time to set up, it is necessary to persevere.
According to Johanna Rozenblum, clinical psychologist“notifications are indeed a real pollution of the mind. The solution to protect yourself from them is radical: deactivate them. We must not minimize the addictive side of our screens which has a real impact on emotional balance“.
Then each time you pick up your phone, ask yourself if it’s really useful or just a distraction, and if the answer is the second option, try to postpone the request.
Finally, learn to concentrate in periods, for example, for half an hour, before taking a five-minute break during which you can consult your smartphone, trying to lengthen this period gradually.