2009/02/27 by Jackie Andrade · 2 citations
Neuroscience · Psychology · #Mind wandering and attention #Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies #Creativity in Education and Neuroscience #Surprise #Active listening #Psychology #Task (project management) #Test (biology) #Memory test #Cognition #Cognitive psychology #Applied psychology #Social psychology #Communication #Psychiatry
paper · doi:10.1002/acp.1561
openalex publication_date 2009/02/27 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/04
Abstract Doodling is a way of passing the time when bored by a lecture or telephone call. Does it improve or hinder attention to the primary task? To answer this question, 40 participants monitored a monotonous mock telephone message for the names of people coming to a party. Half of the group was randomly assigned to a ‘doodling’ condition where they shaded printed shapes while listening to the telephone call. The doodling group performed better on the monitoring task and recalled 29% more information on a surprise memory test. Unlike many dual task situations, doodling while working can be beneficial. Future research could test whether doodling aids cognitive performance by reducing daydreaming. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.