While some people may think their ability to multitask comes easily,
a report published in the current issue of Science magazine suggests
the brain’s two lobes automatically divides the ability to do two tasks
in half, and the report warned overloading the brain with several tasks
simultaneously reduces its ability to function as effectively. The
study was authored by Sylvain Charron and Etienne Koechlin of the
Institut National de la Santé and Ecole Normale Superieure,
respectively.
The report
noted the brain’s anterior prefrontal cortex (APC) gives humans the
ability to simultaneously pursue several goals. Koechlin and Charron
set out to find how the brain’s motivational system, including the
medial frontal cortex (MFC), drives the pursuit of these concurrent
goals. Using brain imaging, they observed that the left and right MFC,
which jointly drive single-task performance, divide under dual-task
conditions. “While the left MFC encodes the rewards driving one task,
the right MFC concurrently encodes those driving the other task,” an
abstract of the report explained. “The same dichotomy was observed in
the lateral frontal cortex, whereas the APC combined the rewards
driving both tasks. The two frontal lobes thus divide for representing
simultaneously two concurrent goals coordinated by the APC. The human
frontal function seems limited to driving the pursuit of two concurrent
goals simultaneously.”
In an interview
with BusinessWeek, Koechlin said while dual-tasking is fine, tackling
three tasks at the same time would overwhelm the brain’s frontal
function capacity. "Human higher cognition is dual in essence, which
can explain why people like binary choice and have difficulties in
multiple choices [people can easily switch back and forth between two
options before making a decision, but not across three alternatives],"
he told the news outlet. "This finding…suggests that the frontal
function cannot keep track of more than two goals/tasks at the same
time."
This research may help explain the results of a report
published in August 2009 from researchers at Stanford University.
Scientists there found those likely to experience rigorous daily
multitasking are negatively impacting their cognitive state. The
report, “Cognitive Control in Media Multitaskers,” claimed heavy media
multitaskers performed worse on a test of task-switching ability than a
group of users who multitasked lightly. The results suggested media
multitasking, a rapidly growing societal trend, is “associated with a
distinct approach to fundamental information processing.”
The research team conducted tests of 262 college undergraduates,
dividing them into two groups. Results showed that heavy media
multitaskers are more susceptible to interference from irrelevant
environmental stimuli and from irrelevant representations in memory.
This led to the unexpected result that heavy media multitaskers
performed worse on a test of task-switching ability, which researchers
concluded was likely due to reduced ability to filter out interference
from the irrelevant task set.
While evidence suggests reducing the need for multiple tasks is a
health benefit, cutting back on multitasking may not be an easy option
for small business owners. A July survey by online payroll specialist
SurePayroll found small to medium-size businesses (SMBs) are being
forced to do more with less in a constrictive economy, but an increase
in multitasking is hurting the quality of service at some midmarket
companies. The survey found 88 percent of small business owners think
multitasking is now a key component in running a successful business
that business owners should embrace.
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Midmarket News & Reviews 
