Internet Multitasking and Problem-Solving Ability: A Correlational Study Among College and University Students in Sikkim

Abstract

Multitasking is becoming ever more prevalent in learning contexts, so it is essential to know about its cognitive influence. While there is evidence that multitasking degrades executive function, others propose that its influence is context dependent. The current study investigated the association between internet multitasking and problem-solving capacity among 361 Sikkim college and university students (189 males, 172 females), with gender differences. Internet multitasking was measured with the 5-item Internet Multitasking Scale (Reinecke et al., 2016), which had high reliability (α = .84), and problem-solving was quantified with the 35-item Problem-Solving Inventory (Heppner & Peterson, 1982), which also had high reliability (α = .90). On this problem-solving scale, higher scores represent lower functional ability. Scores indicated that men did ever so marginally better at multitasking (M = 26.7) and problem-solving (M = 117) compared to women (M = 23.4 and 113, respectively). There was a large positive correlation (Spearman’s ρ = 0.672, p < .001) indicating that there was more multitasking related to poorer functional problem-solving ability. There were gender differences on internet multitasking (p = 0.046), but not for problem-solving (p = 0.250). Regression analysis confirmed that internet multitasking significantly predicted problem-solving scores (β = 0.505, p < .001) with 25.5% of variance accounted for (R² = 0.255). Excessive multitasking may disable effective problem-solving. Future studies should investigate the relationship longitudinally, and educational institutions should promote reflective technology use to enable the cognitive potential of students.