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Your post makes me wonder whether news-&-opinion audio podcasts also can hurt one’s focus, given that they can bounce in minutes from one news story to the next. Or, is it the visual component of videos that makes them much better than audio-only sources at hurting focus?
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When I read the study, it was more centered around the visual context. Something is happening in the brain that makes this more damaging than audio alone.
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Yeah I feel the same way about podcasts to be honest, I know they are offered as a ‘tool’ on dumbphones such as the light phone 2 and 3 and you can sideload calmcast onto the Kompakt, but I often feel they are a distraction and I end up taking them off the phone. I feel like even on the phone like the Kompakt if your day is walking around or being on the bus where ever constantly listenting to music or podcasts with ear buds in your ears are you really present? We always need to be distracting ourselves from boredom and now we convince ourselves listening to music or a podcast is not wasting time, but I have really tried to unplug completely and keep my Kompakt as distraction free as possible. I had a e-reader on it but then realized okay I am at the Dr’s office now staring at my phone like everyone else and yes I guess I am reading but I am forcing myself to be bored and present. So as of now I don’t have calmcast on my kompakt and I do feel like it has improved my focus to be honest
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I formerly was a fan of listening to podcasts and audiobooks while on a walk or run. Now, though, I like the situational awareness – especially on city streets but even on suburban streets and on walking paths – that walking or running without headphones/earbuds gives me. I now like to listen to podcasts and audiobooks and radio broadcasts while resting at home, where I can give them my full attention.
I formerly convinced myself that listening to something while running was a way to be more efficient. Now I prefer to absorb the sights and sounds around me during my runs – the birds, the traffic, and the people walking like zombies to their jobs as they stare at their smartphones.
Because my flip-phone makes podcast and audiobook listening difficult, I use a SIM-less cellphone for podcasts and audiobooks. I look forward to getting a Kompakt again, so that I can simplify my electronics to ONE cellphone – but with the now-ingrained habit of isolating these listening activities to rest at home and NOT using them as a boredom-killer.
Three and a half years of flip-phone use has trained me NOT to pick up a cellphone when I start to feel bored. Instead, I sometimes try to observe that sense of boredom and to ask myself why I might be feeling it. Or, more often, I simply overcome that sense of boredom by paying attention to the people and things around me.
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