Research & Resources

Here’s a start.  Check back often as this page will be continually updated.

Websites on Distraction, Time Management, Productivity:

United States Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Time Use Survey

Distraction.gov: The Official U.S. Government Website for Distracted Driving.  Additional resources on distracted driving from Verizon Wireless.       

Free guided meditation programs for learning to control your attention, from UCLA Health.

Project: Time Off:  Powered by the U.S. Travel Association

Productivity Books, Time Management Books, Effectiveness Books:

Personal Productivity Secrets: Do what you never thought possible with your time and attention, and regain control of your life! by Maura Thomas

Mindful Work:  How Meditation is Changing Business from the Inside Out, by David Gelles

Deep Work:  Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World, by Cal Newport

Reclaiming Conversation:  The Power of Talk in a Digital Age, by Sherry Turkle

Delivering Happiness:  A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose, by Tony Hsieh

Thrive:  The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder, by Arianna Huffington

Everybody Matters:  The Extraordinary Power of Caring for Your People Like Family, by Bob Chapman and Raj Sisodia

Smart Thinking: Three Essential Keys to Solve Problems, Innovate, and Get Things Done by Art Markman, PhD

Smart Change:  Five Tools to Create New and Sustainable Habits in Yourself and Others by Art Markman, PhD

The Information Diet: A Case for Conscious Consumption, by Clay A. Johnson

Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, by Roy F. Baumeister and John Tierney

The Power of Habit:  Why We Do What We Do In Life by Charles Duhigg

Shine: Using Brain Science to Get the Best from Your People by Edward Hallowell

Spark: The Revolutionary Science of Exercise and the Brain by John Ratey

Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other by Sherry Turkle

The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology That Fuel Success and Performance at Work by Shawn Achor

Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence by Daniel Goleman

CrazyBusy: Overstretched, Overbooked, and About to Snap!  Strategies for Handling Your Fast-Paced Life by Edward M. Hallowell, M.D.

Flow:  The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life, by Winifred Gallagher

Distracted: The Erosion of Attention and the Coming Dark Age, by Maggie Jackson

Digital Convergence: How the Merging of Computers, Communications and Multimedia is Transforming Our Lives, by Andy Covell

The Invisible Gorilla, and Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us, by Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simons

The Way We’re Working Isn’t Working: The Four Forgotten Needs That Energize Great Performance, by Tony Schwartz, Jean Gomes and Catherine McCarthy

The Attention Economy: Understanding the New Currency of Business, by Thomas H. Davenport and John C. Beck

Useful Articles Showing Perspectives on Productivity, Time Management, and Effectiveness:

Executives, Protect Your Alone Time, by Scott Barry Kaufman and Carolyn Gregoire, Harvard Business Review, December 16, 2015

The Cost of Paying Attention, by Matthew B. Crawford, The New York Times, March 7, 2015

What Happens to Your Brain When You’re Always on Your Phone, by Kate Bratskeir, the Huffington Post, March 21, 2016

Crashes, Car Insurance, and Beyond: The High Toll of Distracted Driving, by Mary Purcell, MoneyGeek.com,

The Work We Do While We Sleep, by Maria Konnikova, The New Yorker, July 8, 2015

The Organizational Cost of Insufficient Sleep, by Nick van Dam and Els van der Helm, McKinsey Quarterly, February 16, 2016

JP Morgan to Workaholics:  Knock It Off, by Emily Glazer and Daniel Huang, The Wall Street Journal, January 21, 2016

Why Some Men Pretend to Work 80-Hour Weeks, by Erin Reid, The Harvard Business Review, April 28, 2015

To Work Better, Work Less, by Cody C. Delistraty, The Atlantic, August 8, 2014

Losing focus: Why tech is getting in the way of work, by Ian Hardy, BBC America, May 8, 2015

America’s Real Deficit Crisis, by Arianna Huffington, Huffington Post, July 2, 2013

Money Talking:  Stop Stressing, Get Happy, and Watch Your Work Performance Turn Around, WNYC.org, March 19, 2015

How Cellphone Use Can Disconnect Your Relationship, by Guy Winch, PhD., Psychology Today, January 13, 2015

Checking Work Email at Home Can Cause Heart Problems, Anxiety, and Headaches, Warn Experts, by Ben Spencer, Daily Mail.com, September 23, 2014

Multitasking: Switching costs, American Psychological Association, March 20, 2006

Technology: Myth of Multitasking, by Jim Taylor, PhD., Psychology Today, March 20, 2011

Multitasking and Stress, by Chris Woolston, HealthDay, Mar. 11, 2014

Addicted to Your Smartphone? 10 Signs You Might Be, by Kelly Wallace, CNN.com

Do You Suffer From Decision Fatigue? by John Tierney, NYTimes.com

Hit the Reset Button in Your Brain, by Daniel Levitin, The New York Times

You’ll Never Learn! by Annie Murphy Paul, Slate.com

Your Work-Life Balance Should Be Your Company’s Problem, by Nanette Fondas, Harvard Business Review

The Heretics Guide to Getting More Done, by David Brendel, Harvard Business Review
Happy Employees Are More Productive Employees: by Jessica Stillman, Inc.com

How Always Being Busy Makes You Dumber by Drake Baer, FastCompany.com

Focus Makes Perfect,  by Patricia Rivera, The Greeley Tribune, Jan. 14, 2014.  This article also appeared on VailDaily.com, NRToday.com, The Fence Post, Sky Hi Daily News, The Aspen Times, NevadaAppeal.com, RecordCourier.com, ContentThat Works.com, and MyWindsorNow.com

Saving the Art of Conversation in the Age of the Smartphone, by Megan Garber, The Atlantic, Dec. 29, 2013

The Myth of Multitasking, ScienceFriday.com, May 10, 2013

It Don’t Mean A Thing If You Ain’t Got That Ping, by Matt Richtel, The New York Times, April 22, 2007

Technology May Lead to Attention Deficit Disorder, by Kevin Parrish, Tom’s Guide, November 16, 2009

Earplugs to Lasers: The Science of Concentration, by John Tierney, New York Times, May 4, 2009

Handwriting is a 21st Century Skill, by Edward Tenner, The Atlantic, April 28, 2011

Tracking Wonder, by Jeffrey Davis, Psychology Today, April 22, 2011

Proud of Being Overwhelmed?  You May Be a Stress Seeker, by Maura Rhodes, MSNBC, May 11, 2011

How Meditation Might Ward Off The Effects Of Aging, by Jo Marchant, The Guardian, April 23, 2011

Are You Buying Toys That Stunt Your Child’s Brain? by Fran Lasker, Huffington Post, August 3, 2011

In Praise of Distraction, by James Surowiecki, The New Yorker, April 11, 2011

Traditional Take on Data Clutter, by Alfred Hermida, BBC News, February 5, 2004

The Only Way to Get Important Things Done, by Tony Schwartz, Harvard Business Review, May 24, 2011

Overestimating Our Overworking, by Laura Vanderkam, The Wall Street Journal Online, May 29, 2009

The Rise of the Inattention Economy, by Adrian Ott, Fastcompany.com, March 11, 2010

MediaShift: Why We Need to Teach Mindfulness in a Digital Age, by Aran Levasseur, PBS.org, April 4, 2012

This is Your Brain on Multitasking, by Jessica Stillman, Inc. Magazine, January 13, 2012

Warning: Your Attention is Under Siege, by Tony Schwartz, Harvard Business Review, November 15th, 2010

When the Mind Wanders, Happiness Also Strays, by John Tierney, NY Times, November 15th, 2010

Achieving a Healthful Digital Diet, by Matt Richtel, NYTimes, November 21st, 2010

Dopamine Makes You Addicted to Seeking Information, by Susan Weinschenk, Ph.D., on the “What Makes Them Click” Blog

Multitasking is Not Really Good for Anyone, by Beth J. Harpaz, Associated Press, October 29, 2010

Outdoors and Out of Reach: Studying the Brain, by Matt Richtel, NY Times, August 15th, 2010

Interview with Sherry Turkle, author of “Alone Together: Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other, ” Frontline by PBS

Your Brain on Computers: Attached to Technology & Paying a Price, by Matt Richtel, NY Times, June 6th, 2010

So Much Media, So Little Attention Span, USA Today, March 30, 2005

Are Kids Too Wired for Their Own Good? Time Magazine, March 19, 2006

The Lure of Data – Is it Addictive? by Matt Richtel, NYTimes, July 6th, 2003

Multitasking Splits the Brain, Science Magazine, April 15, 2010

Your Brain on Computers: Digital Devices Deprive Brain of Needed Downtime, by Matt Richtel, NYTimes, August 24th, 2010

Big Bang! Digital convergence is finally happening — and that means new opportunities for upstarts and challenges for tech icons, BusinessWeek, June 21, 2004

Why Can’t You Pay Attention Anymore? CNET, March 28, 2005

Driven to Distraction Series, by Matt Richtel, NYTimes, 2009

Attention Loss Feared Amid High-Tech Brain Rewiring, Richmond Times-Dispatch, December 12, 2009

The Myth of Multitasking, BellaOnline

Whirling Dervish Drivers, Op-Ed by Maureen Dowd, July 21, 2009, NYTimes

Study Suggests Meditation Can Help Train Attention, May 8, 2007, NYTimes

Facebook is Making Us Miserable, December 9, 2011, Harvard Business Review Blog Network

Knowledge-Worker Productivity:  The Biggest Challenge, by Peter Drucker, California Management Review, Volume 41, Number 2, Winter, 1999

The Privacy Crisis, Steelcase 360 Magazine, Issue 68

Productivity Research Studies:

The Cost of Interrupted Work: More Speed and Stress, University of California, Irvine, & Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany

Loss of Control Fuels Superstitions, Rituals, Conspiracy Theories, October 2, 2008, Texas Enterprise, The University of Texas at Austin

Music We Like Can Be More Distracting Than Music We Don’t, August 2, 2012, The British Psychological Research Digest

Meditation Helps Increase Attention Span, July 16th, 2010, ScienceDaily

Is Technology Producing A Decline In Critical Thinking And Analysis?, ScienceDaily, January 29th, 2009

Multi-Tasking Adversely Affects Brain’s Learning, UCLA Psychologists Report, ScienceDaily, July 26, 2006

Healthways, Inc:  Poor Employee Health Habits Drive Lost Productivity According to Major New Study of Nearly 20,000 American Workers, 4-traders.com, August 6, 2012

When We Forget to Remember:Failures in Prospective Memory Range from Annoying to Lethal, ScienceDaily, July 31, 2012

Is Multitasking More Efficient? American Psychology Association, August 5, 2001

Listening to Distraction: A Developmental Study of Selective Attention, from Stanford University on ScienceDirect

Divided Representation of Concurrent Goals in the Human Frontal Lobes, Science Magazine, April 16th, 2010

Don’t Spread Yourself Too Thin: The Impact of Task Juggling on Workers’ Speed of Job Completion, the National Bureau of Economic Research, October, 2010

Mental Training Affects Distribution of Limited Brain Resources, Public Library of Science

Multitasking: productivity effects and gender differences, Thomas Buser and Noemi Peter, University of Amsterdam

Health, Wellbeing & Productivity in Offices:  The next chapter for green building, by the World Green Building Council

Risk at home:  privacy and security risks in telecommuting, presented by Ernst & Young and the Center for Democracy and Technology

Multimedia

Distraction Podcast:  Hosted by Dr. Edward Hallowell

Julian Treasure Newsnight December 2013:  Dot Complicated

Digital Nation: Distracted by Everything (Frontline on PBS)

NPR Fresh Air, Digital Overload: Your Brain on Gadgets

Crackberry’d: The Truth About Information Overload

Researchers & Thinkers I Follow:

Dr. Daniel Levitin

Mindful Schools: Engaging Children, Supporting Educators, Transforming Schools

William James, 20th Century psychologist, philosopher & medical doctor

Dr. Michael Posner

Dr. Edward Hallowell

Dr. John Ratey

Ellen Galinsky

Dr. David Meyer

Dr. Gloria Mark

Dr. Emma Seppala