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Updated 03/14/19
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Focus Hocus 101
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New brain science dispels myths & common misunderstandings about focus ability. "Think of attention as a highlighter. As you read through a section of text in a book, the highlighted section stands out, causing you to focus your interest on that area." "Attention allows you to "tune out" information, sensations and perceptions that are not relevant at the moment and instead focus your energy on the information that is important." "What is Attention?" by Kendra Cherry http://psychology.about.com/od/cognitivepsychology/f/attention.htm About Kendra Cherry: http://psychology.about.com/bio/Kendra-Cherry-17268.htm New brain science presents mounting evidence that a focusing 'abnormality' does not actually exist in over 90% of today's diagnosed cases. "A recent study sampled over 2,000 adults during their day-to-day activities and found that 47 percent of the time their minds were not focused on what they were currently doing." "....It's the nature of the mind to wander." "....New research reveals what happens in a wandering mind — Ironically, mind-wandering itself can help strengthen our ability to focus, if leveraged properly..." "A Brief Introduction to the Default Mode Network" (3 minutes) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6A-RqZzd2JU&feature=player_embedded "How to Focus a Wandering Mind", July 17, 2013 http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_to_focus_a_wandering_mind (Wendy Hasenkamp, Ph.D., is a neuroscientist and Senior Scientific Officer at the Mind & Life Institute.) STOP paying attention (!) "New research involving brain scans showed that when people daydream, the brain actually works harder, and in different ways...." "Surprisingly, the activity of daydreaming activated the lateral prefrontal cortex and the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, the so-called executive network of the brain where complex problem-solving happens." "Let your Mind Wander for a Healthier Brain" https://www.sharecare.com/health/brain/article/daydreaming-improves-brain-function "Our brain has two key systems: an analytic part that helps us make reasoned decisions, and an emphatic part that allows us to relate to others. When confronted with a cognitive task, your brain requires the emphatic area to turn off to get the job done....." "Zoning out doesn't mean your mind is on vacation. Just the opposite". "Zoning out is a Crucial Mental State" http://discovermagazine.com/2009/jul-aug/15-brain-stop-paying-attention-zoning-out-crucial-mental-state "......if you are engaged in a demanding analytic task, it doesn't leave any room for empathy." "Five Surprising Facts about Daydreaming", July 7, 2013 http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/07/130716-daydreaming-science-health-brain/ What does not work: Multitasking “ 'Do not multitask frequently. If you do, you will hurt your thinking, even when you are not multitasking,' advises Professor Dr Clifford I Nass, one of the researchers of the Stanford study in an exclusive interview." "Stop multi-tasking; it's a brain, not an octopus" February 10, 2012 http://www.firstpost.com/living/stop-multitasking-its-a-brain-not-an-octopus-209143.html The web link collection below for this intriguing topic includes several recent significant developments in new brain sciences which may be surprising to parents, educators, and even many medical professionals. New MRI brain scan technology and breakthroughs in neuroplasticity and biochemistry sciences are turning the tables on conventional theories. We've learned that each person shapes a completely unique brain, and it develops at its own pace for the first two decades of life..... -- We know attention focusing ability is related to frontal lobe development, which is not actually complete until age 25 or so.... -- New scanning studies document amazing regenerative ability of the brain, without the drugs which can block a brain from developing its own resources. -- Today, mental weaknesses are seen as physical systems in need of training and practice, instead, of addictive, temporary coping mechanisms served by drugs. This newscast shows how brain training gets kids off meds in less than six months: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4legUHI2tfg&feature=player_embedded (3 minutes) "Your frontal lobe represents nearly a third of your entire brain and is the last region of the brain to develop…." "....From early adolescence to young adulthood, the frontal lobes, and the intricate connections between them, are undergoing dramatic functional and structural changes that remodel the brain’s complex connectivity and advance its capacity to engage in integrated, reasoned, and high-level thinking." "You can strengthen the brainpower of your frontal lobe every day of your life." "Make Your Brain Smarter"; Increase your brain's creativity, energy, and focus Sandra Bond Chapman, Ph.D, Published January 23, 2013 http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/make-your-brain-smarter/201301/go-full-frontal-be-smart About Sandra Bond Chapman: https://brainhealth.utdallas.edu/news/my-office-sandra-chapman/ "......As a cognitive neuroscientist with more than 40 funded research grants and 150 publications, Dr. Chapman's scientific study elucidates and applies novel approaches to advance creative and critical thinking, strengthen healthy brain development, and insight innovation throughout life." "Dr. Chapman collaborates with scientists across the country and around the world to solve some of the most important issues concerning the brain and its health." Experts, including some original study authors, are revisiting and challenging the accepted conclusions of decades-old research favoring popular, temporary 'coping' drugs over safer and longer-lasting alternatives for attention focusing issues.... Today's concerned parents are becoming self-informed and opting for new, safer and longer-lasting behavioral management strategies for attention focusing issues. |
