DIGITAL WELL-BEING
Module 1: Mental overload
This module was funded by the Oeuvre Nationale de Secours Grande-Duchesse Charlotte as part of the “Digital Well-Being for Youth” project.
OBJECTIVES OF THIS MODULE
In this module, you will learn about the cognitive fundamentals of mental overload, as well as its causes and consequences.
You will finish by learning about the best practices for improving efficiency on a daily basis.
WORKING MEMORY
Working memory is an area of memory that stores and processes information in real time. At any time, there can be lots of information!
My current task
My physical space
My communication tools
My thoughts
Move your mouse over the buttons to find out more
WORKING MEMORY
MENTAL OVERLOAD
The mental workload is the effort required by the brain to process the information in the working memory.
If there is too much information to process, or if it is too difficult to process, then mental overload occurs, which impairs the brain's capacity:
FACTORS IN MENTAL OVERLOAD
The scientific literature identifies 3 different factors that have an influence on mental workload, which can lead to a state of overload.
Click on the buttons to find out more
BEST PRACTICES TO AVOID OVERLOAD
Mental overload alters the way the brain works, so it's a state that absolutely must be avoided, as far as possible. Fortunately, there are good practices for maintaining what is known as cognitive balance, in other words a perfect match between the tasks to be performed and the brain's limits.
Isolate yourself from noise
Make a to-do list
Train yourself in your core activities
Reduce the number of online requests
Adapt your day to your internal state
Move your mouse over the buttons to find out more
BEST PRACTICES TO AVOID OVERLOAD
TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE
We're going to assess what you've learned with a few summary questions.
TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE
We're going to assess what you've learned with a few summary questions.
DIGITALWELL-BEING
Module 1: Mental overload
WELL DONE! YOU'VE COMPLETED THIS MODULE!
This module was funded by the Oeuvre Nationale de Secours Grande-Duchesse Charlotte as part of the “Digital Well-Being for Youth” project.
Characteristics of my current task
All the features of the task you’re involved in will impact your mental workload. A difficult task may entail a greater risk of mental strain than a simple task. Similarly, a task using obsolete software or software that you don't know how to use will increase your mental workload.
This last point is crucial: your level of expertise in the task in hand determines the automatic mechanisms you follow, enabling you to do the task "without thinking about it". Thanks to these automatic mechanisms, you free up space in your working memory because you don't have to think about everything. The best example of this is driving, which becomes increasingly simpler as time goes by and automatic mechanisms evolve.
The working environment
When you work, your brain also processes the information around you. This comes from the physical world, such as colleagues chatting or footsteps behind you, but also from the digital world, with all the notifications and requests that appear on your communication tools. All this information feeds into your mental workload!
My internal state
How you are feeling and all the emotions you experience will influence the way you process information, which can push you into a state of mental overload.
For example, fatigue requires you to put more effort into processing information, which increases your mental workload. Conversely, motivation allows you to block out all information that is not useful for the task in hand, which reduces the mental load.
Emotions also influence mental workload because they focus your attention on the subject of your emotion: a colleague with whom you have a disagreement, a presentation that's stressing you out, an assignment that you've just lost, etc. are all reasons to distract you even when you're concentrating on a task.
ANGLAIS - Elearning - Bien-être numérique - Module 1
IMS team
Created on September 30, 2024
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Transcript
DIGITAL WELL-BEING
Module 1: Mental overload
This module was funded by the Oeuvre Nationale de Secours Grande-Duchesse Charlotte as part of the “Digital Well-Being for Youth” project.
OBJECTIVES OF THIS MODULE
In this module, you will learn about the cognitive fundamentals of mental overload, as well as its causes and consequences. You will finish by learning about the best practices for improving efficiency on a daily basis.
WORKING MEMORY
Working memory is an area of memory that stores and processes information in real time. At any time, there can be lots of information!
My current task
My physical space
My communication tools
My thoughts
Move your mouse over the buttons to find out more
WORKING MEMORY
MENTAL OVERLOAD
The mental workload is the effort required by the brain to process the information in the working memory. If there is too much information to process, or if it is too difficult to process, then mental overload occurs, which impairs the brain's capacity:
FACTORS IN MENTAL OVERLOAD
The scientific literature identifies 3 different factors that have an influence on mental workload, which can lead to a state of overload.
Click on the buttons to find out more
BEST PRACTICES TO AVOID OVERLOAD
Mental overload alters the way the brain works, so it's a state that absolutely must be avoided, as far as possible. Fortunately, there are good practices for maintaining what is known as cognitive balance, in other words a perfect match between the tasks to be performed and the brain's limits.
Isolate yourself from noise
Make a to-do list
Train yourself in your core activities
Reduce the number of online requests
Adapt your day to your internal state
Move your mouse over the buttons to find out more
BEST PRACTICES TO AVOID OVERLOAD
TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE
We're going to assess what you've learned with a few summary questions.
TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE
We're going to assess what you've learned with a few summary questions.
DIGITALWELL-BEING
Module 1: Mental overload
WELL DONE! YOU'VE COMPLETED THIS MODULE!
This module was funded by the Oeuvre Nationale de Secours Grande-Duchesse Charlotte as part of the “Digital Well-Being for Youth” project.
Characteristics of my current task
All the features of the task you’re involved in will impact your mental workload. A difficult task may entail a greater risk of mental strain than a simple task. Similarly, a task using obsolete software or software that you don't know how to use will increase your mental workload.
This last point is crucial: your level of expertise in the task in hand determines the automatic mechanisms you follow, enabling you to do the task "without thinking about it". Thanks to these automatic mechanisms, you free up space in your working memory because you don't have to think about everything. The best example of this is driving, which becomes increasingly simpler as time goes by and automatic mechanisms evolve.
The working environment
When you work, your brain also processes the information around you. This comes from the physical world, such as colleagues chatting or footsteps behind you, but also from the digital world, with all the notifications and requests that appear on your communication tools. All this information feeds into your mental workload!
My internal state
How you are feeling and all the emotions you experience will influence the way you process information, which can push you into a state of mental overload. For example, fatigue requires you to put more effort into processing information, which increases your mental workload. Conversely, motivation allows you to block out all information that is not useful for the task in hand, which reduces the mental load.
Emotions also influence mental workload because they focus your attention on the subject of your emotion: a colleague with whom you have a disagreement, a presentation that's stressing you out, an assignment that you've just lost, etc. are all reasons to distract you even when you're concentrating on a task.