What Happened To Our Attention Spans?

By M. Gurevich

When the current adults were children, it was a reward to watch TV, coming home after school or right before bed - but only after finishing your homework. Nowadays, most teenagers and children can’t focus on movies or any entertainment that long. Truly, an hour and a half without distractions, notifications, or cell phones seems almost impossible to the average teenager. As many know, the average attention span has decreased significantly, from 12 in 2000 to 8.25 in 2024. This raises the questions: What are the reasons for all of this? What is so fundamentally different about these generations that caused drastic differences in our attention spans and habits? What is the effect of our shorter attention spans? And most importantly – what can we do about it?
 
The most obvious culprit for our shortened attention spans is social media. Whereas some decades ago people were exposed to longer form content, like TV shows and movies, nowadays most of our entertainment comes from short videos, usually from 10 to 60 seconds. The ease in which we can switch what we watch is also surprising. On TikTok or Instagram, if you aren’t immediately interested by some sort of content, you can simply scroll until something more interesting comes along. This has been targeted by giant tech companies to maximise profits, shifting their focuses to shorter-form content and manipulating their algorithms to keep the viewer as engaged as possible for as long as possible. Even movies have taken measures to make their content shorter and easier to digest. Not to mention the enormous changes advertising has gone through, becoming shorter and more sensationalistic. Although humans have always been intrigued by the shocking and bewildering, this has become even more necessary in recent times: for something to be slightly appealing, it must be catchy, sensationalistic, appealing to our senses, and it must grab our attention before we even think about giving it. Besides this, the insane and overwhelming amount of information which is supplied to us – on social media, in the world, in our digital lives - is also a cause of our shortened attention spans. 
 
So, what now? Our attention spans are clearly shorter, and for reasons much out of humanity’s control: it is unlikely that anyone would be willing to give up our modern forms of media or technology. And what is the problem with a short attention span anyways?
 
It is important to note that, unlike some claims, a shorter attention span does not equal a faster pace or increased productivity – in fact, it may be just the opposite. Several studies demonstrate that a shorter attention span can have negative effects for both people’s professional and personal lives. Unable to concentrate on any task for a significant amount of time, productivity is often compromised and reduced, as well as quality. In schools, learning is often affected by short attention spans, as it becomes increasingly harder for pupils to focus. Although some people argue that short attention spans can enhance your ‘filter’, since you filter out uninteresting or irrelevant information faster, it is key to consider that often the information we choose to absorb is simply catchier or more sensationalistic, and not objectively better. Additionally, less focus can bring negative consequences for our personal lives and mental health. As we are constantly bombarded with information and notifications, our brains are rewired to become more stressed and anxious. Interactions with others become less profound since it is harder to focus – a concept called Attention Fragmentation. Clearly, little good has come from our shortened attention spans. But what can we do about it?
 
There is no reason for alarm - experts and studies have already designated several different activities and habits which may help to restore or maintain your attention span. These activities range from meditation to small daily breaks. Some habits like exercise and nutritious eating also help – not only with attention spans, but with your overall health as well.
 
It is unrealistic to ask anyone to quit social media. Technology has become a vital part of modern life, rooted so deeply, it is almost impossible to remove. However, it is crucial to realise the ways in which these tools affect us and know the steps that we can take to improve our own well beings. Now, it is time to take matters into your own hands: this does not need to be the end of your attention span, and you do not need to put your life in the hands of giant tech companies and social media apps. For my closing statement, I want to say that we all have control over our own lives, and we are not puppets: we are individuals.