Interrupt me: External interruptions are less disruptive than self-interruptions

Katidioti, Ioanna; Borst, Jelmer P.; Vugt, Marieke K. van; Taatgen, Niels

doi:10.1016/j.chb.2016.06.037

Cited by 44 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…ey believed they cannot control the timing of these interruptions which subsequently negatively impacts their performance when they resume the interrupted task, as evidenced in the following quote from one of the participants: "I tend not to have control over these interruptions and thus I need to follow what they are saying and nd a way to make what they are saying happen, and this causes me to become very involved with that one thing which takes time". However, the results of two recent studies conducted by Katidioti et al [16] comparing the disruptiveness of self and external interruptions support the results of our quantitative analysis and reveal that external-interruptions are less disruptive than self-interruptions. Similarly, a recent study by Adler and Benbunan-Fich [4] shows that more self-interruptions result in lower accuracy in resumed tasks which causes performance di culties and consequently sub-optimal results.…”

Section: Rq1-task-speci C Vulnerabilitysupporting

confidence: 90%

Task Interruption in Software Development Projects: What Makes some Interruptions More Disruptive than Others?

Abad

Karras

Schneider

et al. 2018

EasyChair Preprints

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Multitasking has always been an inherent part of software development and is known as the primary source of interruptions due to task switching in software development teams. Developing software involves a mix of analytical and creative work, and requires a significant load on brain functions, such as working memory and decision making. Thus, task switching in the context of software development imposes a cognitive load that causes software developers to lose focus and concentration while working thereby taking a toll on productivity. To investigate the disruptiveness of task switching and interruptions in software development projects, and to understand the reasons for and perceptions of the disruptiveness of task switching we used a mixed-methods approach including a longitudinal data analysis on 4,910 recorded tasks of 17 professional software developers, and a survey of 132 software developers. We found that, compared to task-specific factors (e.g. priority, level, and temporal stage), contextual factors such as interruption type (e.g. self/external), time of day, and task type and context are a more potent determinant of task switching disruptiveness in software development tasks. Furthermore, while most survey respondents believe external interruptions are more disruptive than self-interruptions, the results of our retrospective analysis reveals otherwise. We found that self-interruptions (i.e. voluntary task switchings) are more disruptive than external interruptions and have a negative effect on the performance of the interrupted tasks. Finally, we use the results of both studies to provide a set of comparative vulnerability and interaction patterns which can be used as a mean to guide decision-making and forecasting the consequences of task switching in software development teams.

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Section: Rq1-task-speci C Vulnerabilitysupporting

confidence: 90%

Task Interruption in Software Development Projects: What Makes some Interruptions More Disruptive than Others?

Abad

Karras

Schneider

et al. 2018

EasyChair Preprints

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“…Students' responses 5 and 6 from the Focused Group Discussion extract above tend to confirm these surmises. These findings and surmises find support from submissions in the literature reviewed in the course of this study [11,12,[21][22][23][24][25] The commonalities in all these are distraction and time wasting. Furthermore, some students tend to end up dwelling on self destructive activities.…”

Section: Popular Ways Students Make Use Of Their It Gadgets and Popular Websites Visitedsupporting

confidence: 72%

Information Technology in Learning Institutions: An Advantage or A Disadvantage?

Odukoya

Omonijo

Misra

et al. 2020

Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing

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This study set out to find out the prevalent advantages and disadvantages of using IT in learning institutions, using a private Nigerian university as case study. The core research question was, is the use of IT in tertiary learning institutions more of an advantage than a disadvantage? The survey design was adopted. Two hundred and fourteen students responded to a questionnaire while twenty-four participated in focused group discussion. Ten responded to interview questions It was found that the greatest advantage of IT is easy access to information while immorality was top on the list of the disadvantages identified by the interviewed study participants, with 60%, followed by cybercrime and distraction. It was recommended that more concerted training and sensitization should be undertaken to help the teeming students in Nigeria and the world at large to make more productive use of IT devices in the learning institutions in the face of multifarious web traps and distractions.

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“…However, through this review, it was found that not only external interruptions, but also self-initiated interruptions are a leading source of interruptions during MA. Self-initiated interruptions have been reported to account for 40%-50% of task switches (Adler & Benbunan-Fich, 2013;Katidioti, Borst, vanVugt, & Taatgen, 2016) and have been found, like external interruptions, to result in lower accuracy of tasks (Adler & Benbunan-Fich, 2013). Interventions and strategies designed to minimise self-initiated interruptions also deserve attention.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characteristics of interruptions during medication administration: An integrative review of direct observational studies

Schroers

2018

Journal of Clinical Nursing

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Interrupt me: External interruptions are less disruptive than self-interruptions

Cited by 44 publications

References 26 publications

Task Interruption in Software Development Projects: What Makes some Interruptions More Disruptive than Others?

Task Interruption in Software Development Projects: What Makes some Interruptions More Disruptive than Others?

Information Technology in Learning Institutions: An Advantage or A Disadvantage?

Characteristics of interruptions during medication administration: An integrative review of direct observational studies

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