The Effect of Multitasking and Grade Performance of Undergraduate Nursing Students

Lizy  Mathew

doi:10.4236/oalib.1102059

Lizy Mathew

Abstract: The use of technology in social and educational settings has expanded over the last decade. Millennial students are more likely to multitask, using a variety of devices, in social and classroom activities. The aim of this study was to determine if in-class multitasking, specifically texting, had an impact on test scores of beginning nursing students. In this experimental study, ninety-one students enrolled in a first level nursing course were randomly assigned to texting and non-texting groups during a class lecture. The students listened to a twenty minute lecture on the concept of infection and a sexually transmitted disease. The texting group was asked to send three text messages to the instructor during the lecture. All students completed a ten question quiz that pertained to the lecture content and two questions on demographics following the lecture. Most students who participated in the study were females and had a grade point average of between 3.0 and 3.5. The results identified significant differences between the groups, with lower scores in the texting group. One may conclude that multitasking during class affects outcomes in terms of grading.

Keywords: Multitasking, Grade Performance, Nursing Students

Cite this paper: Mathew, L. (2015) The Effect of Multitasking and Grade Performance of Undergraduate Nursing Students. Open Access Library Journal, 2, 1-4. doi: 10.4236/oalib.1102059.

References

[1] Montenery, S.M., Walker, M., Sorenson, E., Thompson, R., Kirklin, D., White, R. and Rose, C. (2013) Millenial Generation Student Nurses’ Perceptions of the Impact of Multiple Technologies on Learning. Nursing Education Perspectives, 34, 405-409.
http://dx.doi.org/10.5480/10-451

[2] Foerde, K., Knowlton, B.J. and Poldrack, A. (2006) Modulation of Competing Memory Systems by Distraction. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 103, 11778-11783.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0602659103

[3] Ellis, Y., Daniels, B. and Jauregui, A. (2010) The Effect of Multitasking on the Grade Performance of Business Students. Research in Higher Education Journal, 8, 1-10.

[4] Kalisch, B.J. and Aebersold, M. (2010) Interruptions and Multitasking in Nursing Care. Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety, 36, 126-132.

[5] Dzubak, C. (2008) Multitasking: The Good, the Bad, and the Unknown. The Online Journal of the Association for the Tutoring Profession, 1.
http://www.myatp.org/ejournal.htm

[6] Simones, J., Odland, D.N., Schug, V., Blazovich, L.M., Pivec, C., Daniels, J., Becker, M.K., Schulenberg, C., Lehman, S.M., Ohman, K.A., Swiggum, P. and Keller, P. (2014) Student Nurses’ Thinking during Medication Administration. Journal of Nursing Education and Practice, 4, 136.
http://dx.doi.org/10.5430/jnep.v4n11p136

[7] Pashler, H., Kang, S.H.K. and Ip, R.Y. (2013) Does Multitasking Impair Studying? Depends on Timing. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 27, 593-599.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/acp.2919

[8] Polit, D. and Beck, C.T. (2012) Nursing Research: Generating and Assessing Evidence for Nursing Practice. 7th Edition, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia.