Doodling may help with concentration and memory, so says a newly published study comparing doodlers and non-doodlers. Study volunteers were tested on how much they were able to recall after listening to a dull 2.5 minute-long telephone message. Those who doodled while listening performed 29% better in recalling specific names and places mentioned in the message. The other half of the group were left to daydream or do anything they pleased while on the phone. Researchers say that doodling is a simple task that may be sufficient to stop daydreaming, but it won’t necessarily distract you from the task at hand.
Read more and share your opinion.
Tags: concentration, daydreaming, doodle, doodling, focus, memory, psychology, task
Dr. Steven Chang, the author of DailyDose, is a staff physician with Kosmix RightHealth. Dr. Chang practices Family Medicine at the University of California Davis Medical Center, where his medical interests include both pediatric and geriatric care, public health, gay and lesbian health, and sleep medicine. Dr. Chang trained at the Stanford University affiliated O'Connor Hospital, and was a research fellow at the National Institute of Health. He holds an M.D. from McGill University and a BA in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University.
February 27th, 2009 at 9:41 pm
I wholeheartedly agree that doodling increases my focus and memory. I am known for doodling on all papers whether in a lecture, on the phone, or in class. People tease me that I am not paying attention, when in fact, if it weren’t for the doodles, my thinking processes and higher order thinking connections would not be as effective.
Doodles,
Jen