Title: Multi-tasking with Digital Information: Tasks, Information, and Interaction Contexts

Lecturer: Prof. Gloria Mark, University of California, Irvine

Date: 9.4.2013

Hour: 12:15-13:45

Room: Rabin 7052

Abstract: 

Multi-tasking is a way of life for information workers.  In this talk I  will present a set of empirical results from fieldwork observations and  experiments which detail the extent to which information workers  multitask with digital data and will discuss how multi-tasking impacts  various aspects of collaboration and communication in the workplace.

Multi-tasking changes with collocation, gender, and interruptions. I  will report how people compensate for interruptions by working faster,  but this comes at a cost of experiencing higher stress. I will also  report on a recent study where we cut off email of people in an  organization for one week to understand how email affects multitiasking  behavior. We found that without email in the workplace, people  multitasked less and experienced lower stress. These results challenge  the traditional way that most IT is designed to organize information,  i.e. in terms of distinct tasks. Instead, I will discuss how IT should  support information organization in a way consistent with how most  people were found to organize their work, which is in terms of working  spheres, thematically connected units of work. I will also discuss how  the results present opportunities for new social and technical solutions  to support multi-tasking in the workplace.