Continuous Partial Attention

I’m watching TV with my parents, and it’s kind of freaking my mom out that I’m on my laptop at the same time.

“Are you watching?” she keeps asking me. “You really should see this… it’s funny.”

What’s even funnier is that I feel more at home with my laptop open so that I can surf on commercials. This behavior is usual for me, but very strange to my parents.

Is it a generational or lifestyle difference? Maybe it’s both. I’ll tell you this... my parents’ computer is not an easily accessible tool or one that is integrated into their day at least when it comes to their leisure time. The computer is in the basement. To do something as simple as check e-mail they go down there especially to do that.

Continuous partial attention can certainly be detrimental, like when people drive and talk on their cell phones at the same time. We are not good muti-taskers as a rule. It’s essential to unplug now and then.

But there’s something to be said for technology integration.