Put Your Smartphone Down and Let your Mind Wander – You’ll Be Happier

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Daily brief research updates from the cognitive sciences

There’s a lot been said about smartphone usage and how it can be used and abused. Most of this concern revolves around usage in children or teenagers, however, with some research saying there is less to worry about than many assume. But nevertheless, putting the smartphone, or other devices down seems to be a good idea.

This study just out though adds another interesting aspect. It revolves around affective forecasting which is our ability to predict how much we’ll enjoy something or not.

In these studies, led by Japanese researcher Aya Hatano, a total of 259 participants ranked how they thought they would enjoy just sitting and thinking by themselves. Sound like fun?

Well, not according to the participants, it does not sound like fun. And you will likely agree if you are like these participants. And that is probably one of the key reasons we tend to avoid sitting and thinking by ourselves and thereby seeking constant engagement with our devices.

However, the researchers found that people consistently reported this free thinking time as much more enjoyable than they had predicted. And this was irrespective of whether they were left to think by themselves for three minutes or 20 minutes, in a room with no stimulation, or asked during this free thinking or at the end of the period.

This is important for a number of reasons. One we could be distracting ourselves at the cost of something that we actually enjoy more than we think. But a lot of other research has also shown that this sort of free thinking is beneficial for multiple reasons such as helping with problem solving and creativity. It could also rest the brain and allow it to perform better when it has to perform.

All in this shows that sometimes putting own your devices and just letting your mind wander and immersing yourself in your own thoughts is probably a good thing for you – and you’ll enjoy it more than you think. The same probably applies to children as well!

Andy Habermacher

Andy is author of leading brains Review, Neuroleadership, and multiple other books. He has been intensively involved in writing and research into neuroleadership and is considered one of Europe’s leading experts. He is also a well-known public speaker, speaking on the brain and human behaviour.

Andy is also a masters athlete (middle distance running) and competes regularly at international competitions (and holds a few national records in his age category).

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Reference

Aya Hatano, Cansu Ogulmus, Kou Murayama and Hiroaki Shigemasu. 
Thinking About Thinking: People Underestimate How Enjoyable and Engaging Just Waiting Is. 
Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 2022
DOI: 10.1037/xge0001255

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