Information processing on smartphones in public versus private. Issue 6 (29th October 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ohme, Jakob; Searles, Kathleen; de Vreese, Claes H
• Editors: von Pape, Thilo
• Is Part Of: Journal of computer-mediated communication. Volume 27:Issue 6(2022)
• Publication Date: 2022-10-29
• Subjects: mobile devices -- visual attention -- news learning -- public setting -- mobile eye-tracking; Telematics -- Periodicals; Computer networks -- Social aspects -- Periodicals; Communication -- Periodicals; 302.20285
• DOI: 10.1093/jcmc/zmac022
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1083-6101

Abstract

Abstract: People increasingly turn to news on mobile devices, often while out and about, attending to daily tasks. Yet, we know little about whether attention to and learning from information on a mobile differs by the setting of use. This study builds on Multiple Resource Theory (Wickens, 1984 ) and the Resource Competition Framework (Oulasvirta et al., 2005 ) to compare visual attention to a dynamic newsfeed, varying only the setting: private or public. We use mobile eye-tracking to evaluate the effects of setting on attention and assess correspondent learning differences after exposure to the feed, which allows us to uncover a relationship between attention and learning. Findings indicate higher visual attention to mobile newsfeed posts in public, relative to a private setting. Moreover, scrolling through news on a smartphone in public attenuates some knowledge gain but is beneficial for other learning outcomes. Lay Summary: People increasingly get news via their smartphones by scrolling through social media newsfeeds. This often happens in public places like on trains, in cafés, or waiting rooms. These areas are typically more distracting than, for example, a quiet living room or office. It is therefore possible that people pay less attention to news on a smartphone and learn less from it when they use it in public. This study conducts an experiment where we compare attention to news on a smartphone and how much people learn from it in two different settings: A bustling student cafeteria and a quiet laboratory room. We measured attention by using eye-tracking, a technique that helps us to see where people gaze on a smartphone screen. We find that people pay more attention to a smartphone newsfeed in public. We also find that people recall less information but answer more quiz questions correctly if they saw the newsfeed on their smartphone in public compared to in private. Our study cannot fully explain this difference in learning, but we can show that paying more attention to news on a smartphone makes people learn more, regardless of the environment they are in.