From checking emails while on a call to cooking dinner and helping with homework, we all operate through multitasking. But new research suggests that our ability to juggle multiple tasks isn't a single, universal skill. Instead, it is a combination of general abilities (applying across different situations) with more specific abilities (unique to particular multitasking situations). This helps explain why past studies have reported conflicting gender differences in multitasking - often depending on the specific type of task used.
The study, led by the University of Surrey and published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, brought together 224 university students who tackled nine different multitasking challenges.
These challenges were carefully chosen to represent three main types of multitasking: concurrent multitasking, like talking on the phone while driving. Involves doing two things at once; task switching, such as replying to emails while attending to notifications, requires rapid shifts between two tasks; and complex multitasking, like managing a busy kitchen, demands prioritisation and flexible planning.
By analysing individual differences in how participants performed on these varied tasks, the researchers discovered that no single multitasking ability explains performance across all tasks.
Instead, they found that task-switching performance is largely driven by a general multitasking ability that applies broadly across different situations. However, concurrent multitasking and complex multitasking involve both this general ability and specific skills unique to those types of multitasking. For example, complex multitasking often demands more “working memory capacity” - the brain's ability to hold and manipulate information temporarily.
This helps explain why previous studies have produced conflicting results - often due to focusing on just one type of multitasking. For example, some research suggested women were better multitaskers (often based on task-switching tests), while other studies hinted men were superior (often based on concurrent multitasking tests). This new study suggests these differences might be due to the specific type of multitasking being measured, rather than a universal gender difference.
Dr Alan Wong, Senior Lecturer and Programme Lead, MSc Psychology in Game Design & Digital Innovation at the University of Surrey, says:
"These findings show that multitasking is not a one-size-fits-all skill. To understand and improve multitasking, we need to consider both the broad capabilities that apply across tasks and the specialised skills needed for specific situations."
Dr Yetta Kwailing Wong, Lecturer at the University of Surrey, adds:
“Training to improve multitasking abilities shouldn't focus on just one type of task. Instead, a variety of challenges is required to build both general multitasking ability and specific skills needed for particular scenarios.”
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