Gone are the days when emails and phone calls were the only means of communication between employees. Now, there is a different app for everything: Teams and Zoom calls, Slack for instant messaging, Trello and Asana for organization, some messy Excel and Google Spreadsheets, and countless other apps that claim to improve productivity and collaboration.
As more people engage in remote or hybrid work, apps can be a convenient way to stay in touch and get work done, but having to switch between multiple applications can take a toll on workers, leading to a phenomenon known as “app fatigue.”
App fatigue refers to the feeling of being overwhelmed by having too many applications to manage – like you're being pulled in too many directions at once.
For example, you might be in back-to-back meetings with messages coming in from different Slack channels, your phone ringing, and you have to check three virtual “bulletin boards” to keep track of project progress. Not only is this exhausting, but studies have shown it's also counterproductive.
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A study conducted by researchers from three Fortune 500 companies revealed that employees spend a significant amount of time switching between different apps and websites, resulting in reduced focus and efficiency.
This is because humans aren't designed to multitask: while it may feel like you're being productive, having too many apps to think about at once splits your attention and ultimately hurts your performance.
“Switching between workplace apps can have a huge impact on workers because our brains are not built to cope with constant changes in focus,” says Dr Elena Touroni, consultant psychologist and co-founder of Chelsea Psychological Clinic.
“Every time you switch between apps, such as from email to Slack to Zoom, your brain needs time to adjust to the new task. This switching is called 'task switching' and it disrupts your workflow and makes it harder to stay focused and get work done. This is the main reason why multitasking feels exhausting – our brains can't efficiently juggle more than one thing at a time.”
It takes our brains longer to switch between different sources of information than we think. On average, workers waste about four hours per week every time they switch apps because they have to disconnect the previous app, open another one, absorb the new information, and respond appropriately.
Often we try to do this on different platforms at the same time, which requires a level of concentration that we simply don't have, because we can only truly multitask when one activity requires a very low level of concentration, like walking and talking. So, trying to fully concentrate on multiple apps at once and constantly getting distracted by messages and emails can lead to information overload, stress, and anxiety.
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“The constant need to switch attention can create a sense of overwhelm as you struggle to keep up with the demands of each platform,” says Turroni. “This makes it hard to maintain a clear focus, leading to distractions and reduced productivity. Over time, this can lead to burnout, especially if you're expected to always be 'on' across multiple channels.”
App switching can also make employees more prone to mistakes: Adopting new software takes time as employees must learn how to use it effectively, and sending information across different channels can make it easier for information to be overlooked or sent to the wrong person, especially when employees are in a rush or feeling overwhelmed.
Psychologists suggest that when we are constantly shifting our attention between different apps, a concept called “attention residue” can affect the quality of our work. This is because even if the first task is completed, we are still thinking about the previous task when starting the next one, which reduces the quality of the second task.
The problem is that employers are tempted to bombard employees with more and more apps, all of which are pitched as a way to solve common workplace problems and make employees more productive, but that's not necessarily the case. Instead, Touroni says it's better to narrow down communications to one or two must-have apps.
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“Encouraging the use of a single, integrated platform for most tasks helps minimize distractions and keeps everyone on the same page,” she advises.
Before introducing a new app, employers should think about what problem they are trying to overcome and whether the technology can actually address that problem. If a virtual meeting platform is already in use, why change it? Using a modern app may seem like a competitive advantage, but it will only be beneficial if people are comfortable using it.
Setting boundaries around replying to messages is also important: “It's also important for employers to set clear expectations around response times, so employees don't feel pressured to respond immediately on multiple apps at the same time,” Turoni adds.
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