We are still able to stay alert, notifications permitting. The study

In these years of information overload, frenzied notifications, intrusive WhatsApp groups and videos that intensely and repeatedly capture our attention for just a few seconds, to claim that people’s attention spans have diminished seems such an obvious statement that it scarcely even provokes the criticism it deserves. Yet, according to what we can read in the article published in Nature and written by science journalist David Adam: ‘Is attention span really shrinking?’, things do not seem quite so obvious. First of all, because when attention is tested in the laboratory, it does not appear to have diminished at all. If people are asked to recognise, amongst lines of scrolling letters, only those accompanied by a specific symbol, there is no evidence that ‘people’s basic ability to pay attention has changed’. However, those who are constantly switching between different streams of media information – so-called media multitasking – tend to perform worse in selective attention tests and show a reduced ability to distinguish relevant information from irrelevant information.

Reading the article, one finally discovers the origin of the rumour that the average human attention span today is said to be around nine seconds – tragically shorter than that of a goldfish. The figure is said to have emerged from a marketing report by Microsoft Canada in 2015. Incidentally, it also appears that goldfish can retain memories for months.

However, to avoid referring to data that appears to be out of touch with reality, Adam cites the work of Gloria Mark, a psychologist at the University of California who, for twenty years, has been monitoring how office workers use computers – specifically, the time they spend in front of the screen carrying out a single task before moving on to the next. It emerged that during the early 2000s, the time spent at a computer on a single task was two and a half minutes; by around 2010, this had fallen to seventy-five seconds, and to forty-seven seconds in the early 2020s. Given that the reason for this susceptibility to distraction is thought to lie in the constant stream of rewarding distractions we are presented with – news, notifications, personalised shopping suggestions – and considering that, in laboratory tests, attention span does not appear to be generally impaired, the crux of the matter seems to revolve around our daily habits. If, throughout the day, one is constantly distracted by fast-paced, superficial and rewarding stimuli, one will struggle to read a book. However, if measures are taken to avoid these distractions and cultivate concentration, it is thought that sustained attention may return.

To avoid getting carried away, it is worth remembering that several studies agree that problematic internet use is associated with a reduction in grey matter in various areas of the brain. Indeed, Nilli Lavie, a cognitive neuroscientist at University College London, has shown that ‘grey matter volume can be used to accurately predict (attentional) performance’. Furthermore, it has been found that people with a greater volume of grey matter in the prefrontal regions are better able to resist distractions and maintain their concentration for longer.

Although the roles of genetics and experience in the relationship between grey matter and attention are not yet clear, when in doubt, it is best to try not to get too distracted.