Your cognitive capacity is significantly reduced when your smartphone is within reach—even if it’s off. That’s the takeaway finding from a new study from the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin.
In one experiment, the researchers asked study participants to sit at a computer and take a series of tests that required full concentration in order to score well. Before beginning, participants were randomly instructed to place their smartphones either on the desk face down, in their pocket, or in another room.
The researchers found that participants with their phones in another room significantly outperformed those with their phones on the desk.
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