Are Individuals Sensitive to Changes in Performance when Interrupted?

Abstract

Although there is an abundance of research showing how interruptions disrupt performance, there is little evidence regarding whether individuals believe they are personally affected by interruptions. The goal for this research was to determine whether individuals are sensitive to changes in performance when interrupted. Thirty-two participants wrote essays while interrupted or not interrupted and rated the quality of their essay on a 7-point Likert scale. Afterwards, the participants answered a separate 7-point Likert scale question that directly asked whether they believed that the interruptions negatively affected their performance. Participants' subjective ratings of their essay quality were not affected by the presence or absence of an interruption even though actual essay quality suffered from the interruptions. Additionally, a majority of the participants claimed that the interruptions had no or little impact on performance. Our data suggest individuals may not be sensitive to differences in their actual performance when interrupted.