No gossiping in the office: interruptions double chance of making mistakes

Being interrupted for just three seconds can double the chances of making a mistake – which could prove deadly in some professions, psychologists have claimed. For surgeons a mistake in the workplace could prove fatal.

According to new research reading a text message, hearing a phone ring, or saying hello to a colleague is enough to put someone off their stride while concentrating on an important task.

It is another reason why mobiles, background televisions and other potential distractions should be turned off completely during times of concentration, the researchers from Michigan State University say.

Even the shortest of interruptions had “a surprisingly large effect” on an individual's ability to complete a task. During the study 300 volunteers were given a succession of letter combinations to type on a computer keyboard in the right order.

Some were deliberately interrupted and asked to type two other letters into the sequence before going back to their original instructions, with each intervention lasting, on average, 2.8 seconds. Those who suffered no interruptions at all were likely to make a couple of mistakes, but those who experienced the short intervention saw their error rate double in comparison.

Psychology Professor Erik Altmann, who carried out the study funded by the US Navy Office of Naval Research, said: "Why did the error rate go up? The answer is that the participants had to shift their attention from one task to another. He added: "What this means is that our health and safety is, on some level, contingent on whether the people looking after it have been interrupted."

Question 1. Indicate whether these sentences are true or false. Justify your answers with evidence from the text.

a)  People who are interrupted for a short time are 70% more likely to make a mistake.

b)  The researchers recommend switching off phones and other appliances when we need to concentrate.

c)  The people who took part in the research were paid for their participation.

d)  The research took place in Britain.

Question 2. Answer the following questions in your own words.

a)       How exactly were people tested in this study?

b)       What different distractions are mentioned in the article?

Question 3. Find a word or a phrase in the text that means the same as:

a)       Doctor who operates on people par. 1

b)       The number of times something happens in a particular period. par 5

c)       Conduct par. 6

Question 4. Rewrite the following sentences without changing the meaning.

a)  Being interrupted for just three seconds can double the chances of making a mistake.

     If someone ……………………., then the chances …………………………………………

b) Mobiles, background televisions and other potential distractions should be turned off   completely during times of concentration.

      People ought to ………………………………….

c)  Professor Erik Altmann said that participants had had to shift their attention from one task to another and that this meant that people who look after our health and safety had to be able to work uninterrupted.

     Professor Erik Altmann said “ …………….   and this …………………

Question 5. Write a short essay (120-150 words) on the following topic:

“In today’s world, it is impossible to concentrate.”  Do you agree?