Brain rhythms determine the tendency to lose concentration

From the point of view of evolution, this feature was critically important for the safety of the ancestors. Constant scanning of the space made it possible to spot predators while searching for food. In modern conditions, when a person is surrounded by a multitude of digital stimuli, the same mechanism works against him. Innate windows for switching attention make it easier to divert consciousness from the current task, reducing overall productivity.

An experiment involving 40 volunteers confirmed the existence of clear patterns of activity. The participants had to keep the focus on the object in the center of the screen, ignoring colored dots-stimuli. The EEG data revealed that the periods of deterioration in target detection exactly coincide in time with the moments of greatest susceptibility to distractions. The brain literally makes a person look around several times per second.

The findings open up new perspectives in the study of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). There is a possibility that in people with similar features, the brain does not switch between focusing and viewing states with the right frequency. This leads to either a loss of cognitive flexibility or excessive distraction. Understanding these biological rhythms is necessary to create new techniques for improving concentration.

The work of researchers proves that distractibility is not always a sign of weak will, but the result of basic tuning of neural circuits. In a world saturated with visual information, the natural mechanisms of environmental monitoring come into conflict with the requirements for long-term concentration. Studying these processes will help to adapt the work environment to the natural capabilities of the human brain.