You think your phone will relieve your boredom, but science shows it’s more likely to increase it
來自科學的「警告」 倚靠手機解悶 小心適得其反
When you're bored of some mind-numbing task, what do you do? If you're like many, the answer is a no brainer: You reach for your phone. Five minutes of Facebook or kitten pictures can seem like the perfect break.
If that sounds familiar, a new unpublished study has bad news. Reaching for your phone is likely to leave you feeling more bored.
The boredom machine
The problem isn't taking a break. Previous studies show that we get more done overall if we take regular, short breaks. The problem is your phone. Dutch research shows most of us carry around a boredom- boosting machine in our pockets.
To figure out the relationship between phones and boredom, [a Dutch] research team installed an app on the phones of 83 volunteers to track how often they used their devices. They also asked these volunteers to keep diaries for three days, recording their level of fatigue and boredom every hour.
The researchers' first discovery was no shocker. "Phone breaks were frequent: In the 20 minutes following each questionnaire, participants picked up their phones 52 percent of the time. [They spent] an average of around 90 seconds on it each time," reports the findings on the British Psychological Society Research Digest blog.
Info Cloud
decision fatigue 決策疲乏
Welcome to Info Cloud. Do you ever struggle with willpower?
I know I do. Sometimes I plan to exercise after work. But when the day is over, I'd rather sit on the couch. That happens a lot.
When thinking about changing your clothes or choosing a route, you might start to suffer from decision fatigue.
Decision fatigue. I think that describes it very well. Fatigue is a word we use to talk about being extremely tired.
And we make a lot of decisions or choices in a day. Before we start work, we've already decided what to wear, eat, watch and more.
It's no wonder we don't have much energy left for healthy decisions later on.
There are ways to fight decision fatigue, though. I can plan something in advance like if I set out my exercise equipment ahead of time.
Yes. Setting up routines reduces the number of new decisions you need to make.
That reminds me of how Steve Jobs would always wear the same outfit.
Exactly. The black turtleneck became like a uniform for him.
And not thinking about what to wear means he had brainpower left for creative decisions he needed to make when running his company, so he avoided decision fatigue.
很多人不喜歡做決定，因為必須深思熟慮，做錯決定又要承擔後果，今天要跟大家介紹 decision fatigue 決策疲乏，也就是做決定所帶來的疲乏，例如，今天要穿什麼衣服，晚餐要準備什麼食物，要選什麼禮物等等，這些選擇都很令人傷腦筋，為了要避免 decision fatigue，很多人會選擇簡化自己的生活，像是以前的賈伯斯，每次出現都會穿相同的衣服，有些人可能每天早上都會吃一樣的早餐，這樣就不用想了，要把腦子留給更重要的事情做出更重要的決定。
Language Lab
boredom n. 無聊的感覺或狀態
/ˈboɚdəm/
the state of being bored
- Bobby was not happy about his trip because it was full of boredom.
Bobby 的那趟旅行很不開心，因為實在是太無聊了。
- The children really need to get out of the house: they’re suffering from boredom.
小朋友們需要到戶外去玩，他們現在非常無聊沒事做。
- When Mark complained about boredom, his dad told him to go clean the backyard.
Mark 抱怨說他很無聊，他爸爸就叫他去整理後院。
mind-numbing adj. 極其乏味、非常枯燥的
very dull or boring
mind n. 腦子
- My heart says “yes” to the decision, but my mind says “no”.
對於那個決定，我的心裡是贊同，但是我的腦子卻不同意。
numbing adj. 變麻木
unable to feel anything in a particular part of your body because of cold, injury, etc.
- I could feel the ice-cold water numbing my feet.
我可以感受到冰水讓我的雙腳都麻了。
- Ricky quit his job because he was tired of the mind-numbing assignments.
Ricky 辭職，因為他受不了那些極其無聊的差事。
- That TV show is so boring; I’m not watching another mind-numbing episode.
那個電視節目有夠無聊，我不會再看超級無聊的另一集了。
boost v. 增強、提高
to increase the force, power, or amount of (something)
- William is careful with his diet because he wants to boost his immune system.
William 很重視他的飲食，因為他想增強免疫力。
- Having a nice letter of recommendation might boost my chances of getting the job.
擁有好的推薦函，也許可以增加我拿到那份工作的勝算。
boost n. 增強、提高、推動
an increase in amount; help or encouragement; a push upward
- Parker was afraid of failing and his confidence really needed a boost.
Parker 很擔心會失敗，他的自信心真的很需要被提高。
- The company needs a big boost in their sales.
公司需要大量地提升他們的銷售量。
questionnaire n. 問卷 question n. 問題
a written set of questions that are given to people in order to collect facts or opinions about something
- The company will ask all its customers to fill out a questionnaire.
公司會請他們所有的顧客來填一份問卷調查表。
- After you turn in your questionnaire, you will receive a free gift.
當你把問卷交回去，會收到一份贈品。
- The questionnaire was hard to fill out because the questions were strange.
問卷很難填寫，因為問的問題都很奇怪。
