Conceptions of University Students About Multitasking in Digital Environments
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Abstract
This research aimed to characterize the conceptions of multitasking in university students and describe the practices associated with it. An online questionnaire was applied to 331 participants from different areas, enrolled in a first-year reading and writing course at a private university in the city of Cali (Colombia). The questionnaire mostly included closed-ended multiple-choice questions about young people’s multitasking practices when faced with academic activities, and open-ended questions about their perceptions of this phenomenon. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and content analysis techniques using Atlas.Ti 8.0. Among the results, the majority of students have multitasking practices on screens, although this is not an exclusive activity of the digital environment. Multitasking is conceived, on the one hand, as an “innate” skill, characteristic of today’s youth and, on the other hand, as a response to the demands of the Information Society. For students, multitasking is a big advantage if it is properly regulated.
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