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Children often find it challenging to concentrate on tasks, and instead, they gather information that isn’t directly relevant to the task at hand. A new study from The Ohio State University delves into why this happens, shedding light on the reasons behind children’s “distributed attention.”
The research, conducted by Vladimir Sloutsky, a professor of psychology, along with doctoral student Qianqian Wan, explores why children continue to collect unnecessary information, even when they know what they need to complete a task. Contrary to what some might think, this behavior isn’t due to a lack of brain maturity or an inability to focus. Instead, it may be driven by either an innate curiosity or an underdeveloped working memory.
In the study, published in the journal Psychological Science, researchers discovered that children’s tendency to over-explore during tasks wasn’t due to simple distractibility. Sloutsky and his colleagues designed a series of experiments involving both children aged 4 to 6 and adults. Participants were asked to identify two types of fictional bird-like creatures, “Hibi” or “Gora,” based on specific body parts.
While adults quickly learned to focus on the one body part that perfectly identified the creature, children, even after identifying the key body part, continued to explore other parts before making their decision. This behavior persisted even when all other body parts were covered, eliminating the possibility of distraction.
The researchers also tested whether children were simply enjoying the act of tapping on buttons. However, when given the option to reveal the entire creature with a single tap, children preferred this express option, ruling out the possibility that they were tapping for fun.
Sloutsky suggests that the behavior might stem from children’s underdeveloped working memory. Although they learn that one body part is sufficient to identify the creature, they might not trust their memory and continue to explore other parts to confirm their decision. This need to resolve uncertainty by “sampling” more information is likely due to their working memory still being in the developmental stage.
As children grow and their working memory matures, their ability to retain information for longer periods improves, making them more confident in focusing on relevant details, much like adults. Future research by Sloutsky and his team aims to determine whether this behavior is primarily driven by curiosity or the limitations of working memory.
The study, which offers new insights into the cognitive development of children, was supported by a grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
