Social media is ruining our ability to concentrate. There is a way to reverse this process
Over the last decade alone, the average person's attention span has decreased by 28 seconds. The main culprit here is social media. Fortunately, this can be reversed.
Social media is not a good environment for our brains. According to research conducted at the University of California, Irvine, in 2004 the average attention span on any screen was 150 seconds. In 2012 it was 75 seconds, and in 2023 – only 47 seconds. The amount of stimuli bombarding us online and the ever-increasing levels of stress are changing our brains.
How to improve your ability to concentrate (lost due to social media)
Experts note, however, that there is a way to not only stop this process, but even reverse it. It's about learning foreign languages. As they emphasize, learning a new language clearly improves our ability to concentrate. Research shows that people who know more than one language are better at performing tasks that require a lot of attention.
“It can help, among others, to effectively regain the ability to concentrate. learning a foreign language. Just remember what it's like to talk to someone who speaks a language we only partially understand. When we try to pick up familiar words, expressions or phrases, we begin to focus. Our brain works at high speed and exercises its ability to concentrate. In the long run, this produces fantastic results,” says Sylvia Johnson, an expert in language and intercultural skills at Preply.
Learning foreign languages prevents dementia
In their list, specialists list more benefits for the functioning of the brain, especially in the context of cognitive processes, which include thinking, acquiring knowledge, remembering, judging and solving problems.
It turns out that learning languages improves not only concentration, but also memory. The more often we remember new words, the better our overall ability to remember. The effects are noticeable even after years. According to research conducted by specialists from the Center for Addiction and Mental Health and York University in Canada, learning an additional language can delay or even prevent the onset of diseases such as dementia or Alzheimer's disease.
The positive brain effects of learning languages will also be felt by young people. According to experts from Preply, regular learning of an additional language can improve the ability to acquire knowledge also in non-linguistic disciplines, for example science. There is also improvement in mental energy management in people with ADHD and other cognitive disorders.
