Your smartphone could be draining your brain power - even when you’re not using it

In 10 seconds? A study has put forward the idea that the mere presence of our smartphones beside us can have a detrimental effect on our cognitive capacity.  And that goes for even if we aren't using them. This is called the “brain drain” hypothesis.

So, how does this “brain drain” hypothesis work? The negative effect of the distracting effect of devices on our brainshas been well documented. This stems from the fact that human attention is a limited resource, meaning that the ability to ‘multitask’ really just depends on how fast we can juggle our focus. Moreover, research indicates that our attention tends to favor what is personally relevant, with more meaningful stimuli impairing getting in the way of our ability to keep focused. There is evidence that people can be so attached to their phones that they become physically agitated when separated. And now, recent research indicates that phones might hold such power over us that they can’t be ignored. Thus, the “brain drain” hypothesis proposes that when we’re trying not to use our phones, our brain counters this by placing a constant block on the object - causing a ‘drain’ effect on our attentional resources until they are exhausted.