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Focus & Productivity

The Multitasking Myth: Why Single-Tasking Works Better

Moderate or mixed evidence 6 min read Level: Beginner Reviewed October 30, 2026

Doing two things at once while studying usually slows you down and adds mistakes. Learn what research shows and how to work on one task at a time.

Evidence rating: Moderate or mixed evidence. Lab studies show that switching between tasks slows people down and adds errors (Rubinstein et al., 2001). Classroom studies found that students who used laptops for off-task browsing scored lower on a lecture test, and so did nearby peers who could see their screens (Sana et al., 2013). Many results come from surveys or short experiments, and heavy media multitaskers differ from others in ways that are hard to separate (Ophir et al., 2009). How we rate evidence

What it is

Multitasking means trying to do two or more things at the same time, such as doing homework while texting or watching a show. Most of the time, people are not doing both at once. They are switching quickly from one task to the other.

Each switch has a cost. Experiments on task switching find that people are slower and make more mistakes when they switch than when they stay with one task (Rubinstein et al., 2001). The cost can be small for easy tasks and larger for hard ones. When you study, the hard part is thinking about new ideas, which is exactly where switching hurts most.

In one classroom study, students who used laptops for non-class activities during a lecture scored lower on a later test (Sana et al., 2013). Students sitting behind them who could see the screens also scored lower. Another study found that people who said they media-multitask heavily did worse on some attention tasks, but it is not clear whether multitasking caused that (Ophir et al., 2009). There are exceptions. Doing something automatic, such as walking while listening to a podcast, usually works fine. The problem is mixing two tasks that both need your thinking. Also, the feeling of being productive is not a good guide. Many people who switch a lot feel busy and capable, yet they take longer and notice more errors when they check their work. A quick way to see it for yourself is to time a task done in one go and the same type of task done with interruptions.

When to use it

  • You have a chat window, social media or a video open while you do homework.
  • You keep switching between tabs when writing an essay.
  • You take notes in class on a laptop that also has messages and websites open.
  • You feel busy for hours but finish little.

How to apply it

  1. Choose one task for the next block of time. Write it on a sticky note, such as finish the first five problems.
  2. Close tabs and apps you do not need. Keep only the documents and tools for that task.
  3. Silence notifications and put your phone away, as in the phone distractions guide.
  4. Work for a set time, such as 25 to 45 minutes, on only that task.
  5. Keep a distraction list. When a thought like check the score pops up, write it down and deal with it at your break.
  6. Batch small things. Answer messages and emails at planned times, such as after each work block.
  7. At the end, note how much you finished. Compare it with a session in which you switched often.

Step-by-step examples

Example: writing an essay with and without switching

  1. A student writes a 500-word paragraph set in two evenings.
  2. On the first night he keeps his chat app open and replies as messages come in. It takes about 90 minutes and he rereads the text several times to find where he stopped.
  3. On the second night he closes the chat and works for 40 minutes straight, then replies at a break.
  4. He notes the time, how many edits he needed and how tired he felt.
  5. He repeats this for one week to see if the pattern holds for him. He finds that the uninterrupted night took about 55 minutes for the same amount of writing and needed fewer edits. He knows that one week is not proof, and that the second essay may simply have been easier, so he keeps trying it before deciding.

Example: taking lecture notes on a laptop

  1. A college student takes notes on a laptop, but also keeps a browser open.
  2. She notices that after reading one message she misses a minute of the lecture.
  3. She closes the browser, turns on airplane mode and uses a single note-taking window.
  4. After class she writes a short summary from memory and checks it against her notes.
  5. She asks the person next to her how much of the lecture they remember to see if the change helps. She also decides that for classes with heavy diagrams or math, she will bring a paper notebook instead, since typing equations is slow. She counts that choice as part of the experiment, not as a failure. If the laptop notes work well for her in an easy lecture, she keeps them there.

Advantages

  • Single-tasking cuts switching costs, which are linked to slower work and more errors.
  • It lets you stay with a hard problem long enough to understand it.
  • It can shorten total study time because you are not restarting your thinking.
  • It also helps people near you, since a visible screen can distract them (Sana et al., 2013).

Limitations

  • Many findings come from short lab tasks or surveys, which may not match your own situation.
  • Some tasks mix well. Light background music during a routine job such as copying out notes is usually harmless.
  • A person who multitasks heavily may differ in other ways, so correlations do not prove cause.
  • Strict single-tasking is hard in a world of constant messages, and no one can do it perfectly.

Common mistakes

  • Believing you are one of the people who can do both well, without testing it.
  • Keeping every tab open just in case you need it.
  • Counting the hours at the desk instead of the work finished.
  • Doing quick checks of your phone and thinking they cost nothing.
  • Using a video or show in the background for tasks that need reading or writing.

Recommended next steps

References

  1. Rubinstein, J. S., Meyer, D. E., & Evans, J. E. (2001). Executive control of cognitive processes in task switching. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 27(4), 763-797.
  2. Sana, F., Weston, T., & Cepeda, N. J. (2013). Laptop multitasking hinders classroom learning for both users and nearby peers. Computers & Education, 62, 24-31.
  3. Ophir, E., Nass, C., & Wagner, A. D. (2009). Cognitive control in media multitaskers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 106(37), 15583-15587.

This guide is general educational information. Study methods work differently for different people, and no method guarantees better grades or results.

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