Question: “The attention span of human beings have declined over the years.

Using

knowledge you have learnt through cognitive psychology, please explain why this is so.”

Attention span is measured by how long someone can concentrate on a given task, idea, or

conversation without being side-tracked. The attention span of a human being is often assessed

by a psychologist with a variety of testing instruments, including but not limited to a mental

status exam. Tests like these will often measure how well a person can distinguish between a

specific stimulus from similar and dissimilar ones.

Attention is a higher cortical cognitive functioning component, this refers to someone's ability to

focus and detect stimuli in the general and selected important environment. Focusing attention on

a discrete stimulus is a cognitive and behavioural process that occurs when other perceptible

stimuli are ignored. By the age of 10 years, human beings should be able to focus and sustain

attention.

There are numerous types of attention. We will be focusing on the 3 following.

Focused Attention: This refers to our ability to focus our entire attention on a particular stimulus.

Focused attention is the brain's ability to concentrate its attention on a target stimulus for any

given period of time. An instance of focused attention occurs when one can quickly identify

relevant stimuli. Subjects will be able to select and concentrate on one particular task at a time

when they use focused attention, this is because their brain allocates cognitive processing

resources to it. There will be less difficulty detecting a single, simple, obvious stimulus if there

is just one.

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One of the many factors that affect a person's attention span is the ever-increasing reliant on the

use of technology. Additional stress, poor diet and lack of exercise may also cause temporary

attention disorder. With the constant use of technology, the average human attention span is

decreasing. Studies conducted in the early 2000s have found that the average attention span of

human beings decreased from 12 minutes to 5 minutes. The constant bombardment of short

video clips of less than 10 minutes has resulted in our brains being rewired. Subjects who

generally spend an average of 5 hours a day online may experience difficulties in remembering

people's names. Nevertheless, content creators have begun to create short and engaging content

to capture new and maintain old viewership.

Human physiology has been drastically altered due to Technology. Not only does technology

affect our memory it also affects our attention span and sleep cycles. The scientific term is

known as neuroplasticity or the ability of the brain to alter its behaviour with each new

experience. Those who abuse technology may develop similar neural patterns and brain

chemistry to addicts. Brain scans conducted on various subjects with tech addiction have shown

similarities to those who have abused drugs and alcohol.

Sustained Attention is defined as the ability for a subject to focus on a particular stimulus or

action over an extended period of time. Typically, vigilance tasks are used to measure sustained

attention, requiring individuals to keep an eye on an environment for a relatively infrequent

signal, like a blip on a radar screen. Most older adults do not experience impairments in

vigilance, according to research.

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It is common knowledge that a subject's attention may wander when a person has spent

numerous hours working on a particular project or task. This doesn't mean that they are suffering

from attentional issues. Should they actually have a real problem with sustained attention it

would be almost impossible for them to complete most of the project or task in their daily life.

Fatigue and inefficiency normally accompany poor sustained attention. Various disorders have

sustained attention presently. Attention Deficit Hyper Active Disorder (ADHD) and Attention

Deficit Disorder (ADD) are disorders that have sustained attention as it's main difficulties. Other

disorders that have sustained attention present are Dyslexia, Schizophrenia, Alzheimer's and

Dementia.

Selective Attention is described as the ability to focus on a particular stimulus or motion in the

attendance of other disturbing stimuli. Selective attention happens when a subject focuses all

their conscious attentiveness on a specific stimulus. It is necessary that the subject attends only to

one or a few tasks at a time, to prevent any information overload. One of the main functions of

selective attention is selective hearing, which attends to some stimuli and ignores others.

We are regularly subjected to an overload of endless sensory information. To cope with the

persistent barrage subjects must centre their attention on the important essentials in their

surroundings and allow the rest to merge into the background or pass by completely unobserved.

Eternal factors are linked to features of stimuli. Things that are held constant like size, intensity

and movement stimuli give the impression of important factors of attention. But it is the large,

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vivid and moving stimuli that will catch our attention easily. Attention will always be drawn to

strong and powerful stimuli.

Here are some quick ways to improve one's attention span.

Meditate. One of the best-known ways to improve focus. Meditation will produce a state of

relaxation and a peaceful mind. Throughout the course of meditation, you will learn to focus and

eradicate the muddled thoughts that have congregated in your mind causing immense anxiety.

Your physical and emotional well being will improve with Meditation. To begin sit or lie in a

comfortable place. Close your eyes and clear your mind. Breathe naturally. Focus your attention

on your breathing.

Exercise. Not only does exercise help your body but it will help the brain's ability to ignore

distractions. Adding physical exercise to your daily routine will help increase your brain's ability

to focus and concentrate on the task at hand. The fundamental of the brain's system is the

hippocampus. With exercise Brain-derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) levels increase in the

hippocampus which results in enhancing effects on learning and memory. To begin start slowly

and gradually build up. Allow yourself plenty of time to warm up. Remember to listen to your

body and be creative in your exercise.

Stay Hydrated. A hydrated body will enable the brain to stay focused and alert. For adults, a

minimum of 8 glasses is required a day. If you are exercising on a hot day then more fluids are

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required to avoid dehydration. Stay away from diet drinks. Sugary drinks will help to absorb

electrolytes which are good for the body.

Ask Questions. The whole brain is stimulated and serotonin is released. Serotonin is the hormone

that soothes our mood, promotes feelings of comfort and joy. Your entire body will be impacted

by this hormone. Serotonin will also help with your digestion and sleep.

Listen To Music. Listening to music will engage your brain. It will activate both the left and

right sides of the brain. With the activation of both hemispheres of the brain, it can help with

learning and improve memory. Classical music more specifically will help your brain absorb and

decipher new information.

Drink Tea. Green tea contains both caffeine and I-theanine which is beneficial for memory.

Individuals who consumed green tea on average of four times a week over a span of 25 years

have shown brain regions were interconnected in a more competent manner. Studies have also

shown that regular consumption of Green Tea is effective against age-related decline in brain

structure.

Take Notes By Hand. This creates an increase in focus which will help diminish distractions.

Handwritten notes are found to let students concentrate more on the material during the writing

process, which may be related to increased focus. Switching to handwritten notes allows us not

only the opportunity to minimize distractions but also to increase our focus on the information

we're meant to be taking in.

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Chew gum. Though at one time illegal in Singapore this habit will help increase the flow of

oxygen to the necessary regions of the brain which will help improve memory. Chewing gum

can also help fight sleepiness. There will be a 35% increase in your short-term memory. It will

also improve Cognitive Performance, Lower stress, Anxiety and Increase Alertness.

We can now conclude that the attention span of a human being is very much related to

technology. Technology and all its devices have a huge impact on our lives and it has become a

source of independence and power. Unfortunately, the digital world is here to stay and has

already raised its ugly head in the younger generation. Our smartphones and other devices will

become more and more important as time goes on. The reliance on technology has to be kept in

check in order to prevent us from becoming lazier and less curious about irrelevant information

about the world around us. Furthermore, when people are out in the world, it's harder for them to

make a connection with someone, which can lead to depression, anxiety, and stress. Lastly,

people need to understand how to coexist with technology in a way that is positive and

constructive.

Note: Content may be edited for style, length and preference.

References

Hale, G. (2011). Attention and Cognitive Development (Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed.

1979 ed.). Springer.

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Yaneva, A., Massaldjieva, R., & Mateva, N. (2021). Initial Adaptation of the General Cognitive

Assessment Battery by CognifitTM for Bulgarian Older Adults. Experimental Aging Research, 1–

15. https://doi.org/10.1080/0361073x.2021.1981096

Cherry, K (2020). How We Use Selective Attention to Filter Information and Focus.

App, Z. Why Diversity Matters.

Ebstein, J (2021) Our attention span is shorter than a goldfish’s. Here’s what we can do about it

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