Ping, your pizza is on its way. Ping, please rate the driver. Yes, constant notifications really do tax your brain

By Sharon Horwood, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Deakin University

A ping from the pizza company. A couple of pings from your socials. Ping, ping, ping from your family WhatsApp group trying to organise a weekend barbecue.

With all those smartphone notifications, it’s no wonder you lose focus on what you’re trying to do do.

Your phone doesn’t even need to ping to distract you. There’s pretty good evidence the mere presence of your phone, silent or not, is enough to divert your…

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