The Vanishing Act of Attention: A Modern Crisis

Do you remember that time when you could sit and watch TV for hours without distraction? Or when you picked up your phone to check on a notification but only twenty minutes later you couldn’t even remember the thing you were originally planning to do? All these experiences are a familiar sight to our eyes, which more or less is in cordial relations with the type of content we feed ourselves daily. The psychology behind the reduction of our attention span lies in the content available online and our overconsumption of it. The content which is marketed for it being hyper specific, and extremely short lived which causes us to focus for a shorter time. This shortage in attention span is slowly causing a trivial effect on a large sum of users. It’s quite concerning though for it to leave such big footprints on the pedestal of everyone’s mind, considering its recent invention. The 'Slot Machine' Effect: Training Our Brains for Reward The overuse of social media services has made us so accustomed to taking in brief contents and that's why our cognition has molded itself to flake out so easily. The endless scrolling works on a reward system—each swipe, like, or notification triggers a temporary dopamine rush, keeping us hooked for more. Thus the joy provided by this “slot machine” system harms us to an extent to make one blind enough to not see the distortion of their mental capabilities. Engineered Addiction: When Algorithms Turn Tantalizing But it's not entirely our fault. The boat which once promised us a safe passage, got sunk under the weight of its own architects and outside influence. The architects of this technology knew the dangers they were festering. All the new features which get updated on the reels section and other such micro-level contents surely makes it more easier and engaging for the public. But it also worsens their mental health unknowingly; which is known by these builders too well. Your mid-sems have begun and you have been preparing for it in an excruciating manner. You take a short break to scroll through reels and what might shake your senses a bit is how the app shows you the same content which resembles perfectly with your current life. We all have experienced this uncanny resemblance of the algorithm of our feeds to our life. How it changes its colours as soon as the shades in our life take a turn. It's not that the audience goes and tells the creators about their personal life. But it’s their pattern and the usage which is being noticed by the base systems to create that hyper-relatable content which soon turns so tantalising for a person to abandon it easily. Like a moth to a flame, our cognition remains stuck on that heart button for the rush it gives. The Goldfish Effect: Fragmented Focus and Lost Willpower One can say that the human attention span is reduced less than a goldfish. The content we choose to see has slowly been taxing our abilities leading us to train our brains to give up easily. The effect of this reduction is not just affecting our daily work but our inner will power too. Due to daily use, we start seeing the world too from the same lens with which we use our phones. A person tries on a new hobby and fails at it in the initial phases but then he decides to lose the very interest in it cause it became difficult and complex. One loses their patience to know that learning a new skill takes time just like removing an addiction takes time. Our brains are getting trained for the need of constant task-switching to give it the adrenaline rush in the name of fuel. The classic line “Practice makes a man perfect” is proved so well in this scenario because unfortunately it's the consequences of our own efforts, which caused the brain to be subdued to this extent. We go through numerous apps throughout the day which causes our attention to be fragmented and gradually our brain is fostered to learn anything in the new pattern which it has acquired. Real-World Costs: Empathy, Understanding, and Disconnection This usage surely doesn’t prove to be beneficial at all; with effects leading to increased anger issues due to lack of understanding and empathy in people to the loss of interaction with the real world logistics due to the intense connection built with this digital world. Seeing now we know the problem already exists which surely calls for the crucial question “the world which is so eager to drop us down then how should we act upon it to regain our hold on the cognitive imbalance?” Regaining Control: Practical Steps for Cognitive Retraining The very first advice would surely address the elephant in the room — cut off social media altogether. But in this fast-paced world, one just can’t scratch it off and throw it out a window. You have to use it one way or another but the problem is the over consumption which needs to stop. It isn’t just not a distraction so it surely does need an active retraining of your mind to insinuate towards its roots. An attempt to turn your attention from the screens towards your hobbies will prove to be beneficial as one would realise the things which we missed in this process of fragmented scrolling. One can make screen-free zones which would not be just to stop using your phone but also to make you feel the lost art of finding happiness in small things. Instead of checking your phone constantly, one can designate small windows for check-ins. Often it's noticed that people use these services due to their need to avoid boredom and loneliness, they can create a list of screen-free tasks which you can try instead. There can be numerous other effective ways to work on your attention keeping skills but it would be different for everyone curated according to their capabilities. The Role of Wellness: Sleep and Exercise for a Sharper Mind To excel in cognitive abilities one needs to work on their overall health. Maintaining a good lifestyle will surely help to keep your mind out of a dense state. Starting from maintaining a proper sleep schedule, taking out 10 minutes daily for a quick exercise routine are all beneficial for a better attention span. It’s proven that a good sleep of 7-8 hours and 150 minutes of aerobic exercises can promote new brain connections, reduce stress and hence the overall stimulation of your brain. The Quest for Self-Preservation in the Digital Age It is quite ironic though in the age of infinite level of information, we are taken down by such gradual deterioration of our brains. We have allowed the immediate, tectonic surge of adrenaline to take over when one can find peace from life away from distractions. To regain the focus necessary for true learning and deep connection, we must actively invest in our attention span so that we could excel in the quest of self-preservation and prevent ourselves from being trapped by the digital nuances of the world.