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Understanding Digital Distraction Understanding Digital Distraction a Longitudinal Study on Disruptive Everyday Media Multitasking Among Diginatives

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Understanding Digital Distraction Understanding Digital Distraction a Longitudinal Study on Disruptive Everyday Media Multitasking Among Diginatives View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by National Library of Finland DSpace Services Johanna Lindström Johanna Lindström | Understanding Digital Distraction | Understanding Digital | 2020 Johanna Lindström Understanding Digital Distraction A Longitudinal Study on Disruptive Everyday Media Multitasking Among Diginatives 9 789517 659574 Åbo Akademi University Press | ISBN 978-951-765-957-4 Johanna Lindström (Juslin) Born 1981 in Pargas, Finland M.Sc. in Business Administration (International Marketing), Åbo Akademi University, 2008 University teacher in international marketing at Åbo Akademi University School of Business and Economics Åbo Akademi University Press Tavastgatan 13, FI-20500 Åbo, Finland Tel. +358 (0)2 215 4793 E-mail: [email protected] Sales and distribution: Åbo Akademi University Library Domkyrkogatan 2–4, FI-20500 Åbo, Finland Tel. +358 (0)2 -215 4190 E-mail: [email protected] UNDERSTANDING DIGITAL DISTRACTION Understanding Digital Distraction A Longitudinal Study on Disruptive Everyday Media Multitasking Among Diginatives Johanna Lindström Åbo Akademis förlag | Åbo Akademi University Press Åbo, Finland, 2020 CIP Cataloguing in Publication Lindström, Johanna. Understanding digital distraction : a longitudinal study on disruptive everyday media multitasking among diginatives / Johanna Lindström. - Åbo : Åbo Akademi University Press, 2020. Diss.: Åbo Akademi University. ISBN 978-951-765-957-4 ISBN 978-951-765-957-4 ISBN 978-951-765-958-1 (digital) Painosalama Oy Åbo 2020 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Repeatedly over the years, people have told me that writing a doctoral dissertation is a journey. And yes, I couldn’t agree more – it is quite some journey! My journey has lasted much longer than I expected, and I reached a different destination than I expected, following a completely different route than intended. The journey has been nothing short of chaotic, but it has certainly been very interesting and has pushed me out of my comfort zone over and over again in previously unimaginable ways. In the end, I think I have probably learned more about myself than about the actual topic of the dissertation (even though I have learned a thing or two about that as well). The journey, which started shortly after I returned to work from maternity leave after our first son was born, also included the birth of our second son and a subsequent period of maternity leave. During this journey, I have also completed a team coaching education, I have been encouraged to rethink, redesign and develop basically all my teaching activities, I have had the pleasure and opportunity to work with some really interesting research and development projects and numerous inspiring people. For all of this, I could not be more grateful. I especially would like to thank Liikesivistysrahasto, Otto A. Malms donationsfond, Stiftelsen för Handelsutbilding i Åbo, research projects The Future of UHF (FUHF) and Wireless for Verticals (WIVE) funded by Business Finland, research project Digitaalinen ostopolku ja vaikuttavat tekijät funded by Viestintäalan tutkimussäätiö (VTS), and Interreg Central Baltic development project Archipelago Business Development (ABD) for providing opportunities and financial support, allowing me to focus on my research. On a more personal note, a big thank you goes to my supervisor, professor Bengt Kristensson Uggla, for inviting me into his seminar, and for valuable comments, opinions and discussions throughout the years. An equally big thank you also goes to my other supervisors. To professor Malin Brännback for inspiring me to embark on this journey in the first place, and for encouraging me throughout the journey. To Anna-Greta Nyström for being there throughout the entire journey as a colleague, as a friend and as someone I could always turn to with research related (and more often non-research related) issues, and for helpful and very constructive comments. Thank you to docent David Sköld (Uppsala University) for your thorough job with my hopelessly half-finished manuscript at my final seminar in April 2019. Your comments helped me refocus and reconsider some essential parts of my dissertation. A big thank you also to my opponent, professor Mats Edenius (Uppsala University), and to my other pre-examiner, professor Jan Gulliksen (KTH), for your insightful input and feedback towards the end of the journey, which helped me finalize this dissertation. Furthermore, I want to thank all my friends and colleagues at Åbo Akademi School of Business and Economics for numerous inspiring, supporting and thought- provoking discussions at meetings, at conferences, at seminars, over lunch, over coffee, and in the corridors of first Henriksgatan 7 and later Fänriksgatan 3. I also want to thank all my fellow doctoral students (and everybody else who have been involved over the years) in Bengt’s seminar group. Without you this journey would have been so much lonelier and the final destination would probably still be far away! Last by not least, words can’t express how grateful I am for my family and my friends who have offered support, encouragement, and most importantly a well- needed balance in my life throughout the whole journey. Tack mamma och pappa för att ni alltid ställer upp! Tack Kika för många långa promenader och samtal! Tack Memme för att du finns till hands då det behövs! Tack Ika för alla välbehövliga lunchpauser under de senaste åren! Tack Carina, Essi, Eva, Malin, Marie, Mimmi, och Tua för alla skumppakvällar, zombieäventyr, löpträningar, kaffeträffar, promenader osv. Utan alla er skulle det ha vara betydligt svårare att fokusera på annat än avhandling och stress mellan varven! Världens största tack till Wille, Elias och Emil - finare familj kunde jag inte ha! Tack för att ni har orkat och stått ut med mig fastän jag i långa perioder suttit klistrad vid skärmen och inte riktigt varit närvarande! Nu ska det bli ändring på det. A very special thank you to Elias for illustrating the cover! You have been there from the start of this journey, and your illustration represents everything that I have repeatedly told you not to do over the years (i.e. multitask with media). The journey has been tough but very rewarding. Numerous times throughout the journey I have doubted myself, my research, and the very thought of actually reaching any destination at all. Repeatedly, I have sworn to throw my computer into the wall, change careers and never ever look at my writings, ever again. However, several opportunities to travel and attend interesting seminars and conferences, the productive and rewarding discussions with supervisors, colleagues, fellow doctoral students and students taking part in the study, as well as continuous new observations on interesting incidents (just to mention a few things), have kept me curious and has pushed me forward, slowly but steadily towards the end of the journey. Here I am now, with the completion of the dissertation in sight. The final stretch of the journey proved to be even more challenging than predicted due to unexpected events in the world. However, the current situation only reinforces the main lessons learned along the journey; the importance of staying curious and focused, of being open to change and willing adapt according to altered circumstances, and of never ever giving up. Åbo, 17th March 2020 Johanna Lindström ii ABSTRACT During the past decade, mobile technology has transformed our media behavior and our relation to media as part of our everyday lives. The media user today has unprecedented control over what content to consume, when and where to consume it, what channels to use and for how long. One consequence is an increasing trend in media multitasking (i.e. simultaneous use of more than one media). At the same time, the rapid technological development seems to outrun the development of our human brains. Our brains are simply not capable of handling the constant stream of media and information that we encounter every day. Prior research on the expanding phenomenon of media multitasking is the starting point of my dissertation. Despite vast prior research on cognitive processes, challenges and negative consequences of media multitasking (stemming from the fact that the human brain is not equipped for simultaneous processing of several tasks), prior research efforts on media multitasking in the everyday context are quite scarce. New perspectives are needed to understand what triggers media multitasking in the current volatile media landscape and to better manage the seemingly endless stream of information and impulses. The aim of the study is to develop a new conceptual framework that helps us understand media multitasking and digital distraction in the everyday context, focusing particularly on the diginative generation (young adults born in and after 1990). The longitudinal empirical diary study that the dissertation builds upon is inspired by Grounded Theory and encompasses a total of about 800 media diaries collected among university students in years 2013–2019. The study highlights four key emerging trends in the participating young adults’ media behavior, which are explored via the theoretical concepts of materiality, routines, addiction and media multitasking. In accordance with Grounded Theory logic, media multitasking is chosen as the core concept. The identified trends and the way the informants describe, relate to and justify their own media multitasking behavior in the diaries indicate that a wider perspective than the traditional
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