Electrophysiological Effects of Smartphone Notifications on Cognitive Control following a Brief Mindfulness Induction

Biol Psychol. 2023 Nov 20:108725. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108725. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTSmartphone use is nearly ubiquitous, with 93% of adults among economically developed countries, including the United States, Canada, Israel, and South Korea owning a smartphone (Taylor & Silver, 2019). Multiple studies have demonstrated the distracting effects of smartphone notifications on behavioral measures of cognition. Fewer studies have examined the effects of notifications on neural activity underlying higher-level cognitive processes or behavioral inductions to reduce smartphone-related distraction. Using EEG spectral frequency power densities, we assessed the effects of smartphone notifications (vs. control trials) on engagement of attentional shifting processes involved in cognitive control during a Navon Letter visual oddball task. Participants were randomly assigned to a brief mindfulness induction (N = 44) or a neutral narration control condition (N = 43). Overall, participants had lower theta-band power, but higher alpha- and beta-band power densities on target letter trials preceded by smartphone notifications. Additionally, participants in the mindfulness (vs. control) condition had a larger attention shifting oddball assessed via theta power density, theta/beta ratio (TBR) values-reflecting increased engagement of cognitive control-particularly for smartphone notification (vs. control) trials. Together, these results provide evidence supporting the idea t...
Source: Biological Psychology - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Source Type: research