Media Multitasking

Researcher(s): Snezhanka Kazakova
Promotors: Verolien Cauberghe, Mario Pandelaere; and Patrick De Pelsmacker
Duration: November 2010 to November 2014

Description

The BOF project focused on media multitasking, which is defined as consuming more than one medium simultaneously. This phenomenon reflects a recent change in the way media are consumed, suggesting a highly fragmented media environment (Brasel & Gips, 2011). Effective multitasking assumes inherent mental habits (e.g., dividing attention, switching attention, keeping multiple trains of thought in working memory) which might imply a radical change in the way we perceive and process media messages (Weber et al., 2009).

The project’s aim was to gain an initial understanding of the effects of media multitasking contexts on media enjoyment, perceptual processing, construal levels and self-regulatory resources. We also explore how individual differences in media multitasking behavior moderate these effects (Ophir, Nass, & Wagner, 2009). During the last phase of the project, the affective and cognitive outcomes of media multitasking are researched in the context of persuasive messages and their effectiveness.

The project contributed to improving our understanding of how consumers’ media experience and responses to advertising stimuli are altered in a media multitasking context.