Sometimes, it's good to be bored
"I am dying of boredom," complains the young wife Yelena in Chekhov's 1897 play UncleVanya. Of course, if Yelena were around today, we know what she would do: pull out her smartphone and find something fun. Today it is easy to get rid of boredom..
That is the finding of two fascinating recent studies. In one, researchers asked subjects to do something boring, like copying out numbers from a phone book, and then take tests of creative thinkings. The result? In the second study, subjects gave more answers to a word test than a non-bored control group after being forced to watch a dull screensaver.
"An restless mind hungers for stimulation, so boredom becomes a seeking state," says Sandi Mann, the psychologist at the University of Central Lancashire. "." Parents will tell you that kids with "nothing to do" will eventually invent some fun games to play ― with a cardboard box, a light switch, whatever.
The problem, the researchers worry, is that these days we don't struggle to overcome these slow moments. "" Mann says. "This might relieve us temporarily, but it shuts down the deeper thinking." So here is an idea: Instead of always avoiding boredom, embrace and face it. Sometimes, anyway. Mann has found she gets some of her best thinking done when she is driving her car and therefore can't be distracted by her phone.
The good type inspires you to see what can come of it. The bad type, in contrast, tires you and makes you feel like you can't be bothered to do anything. An important part of our modern task, then, is learning to evaluate these different types of boredom ― to distinguish the useful kind from the harmful one.
A. And there is, of course, bad boredom.
B. Bored subjects came up with more creative ideas.
C. But what if boredom is a meaningful experience?
D. These moments are a lot more valuable than expected.
E. Actually, tips on getting away from boredom are countless.
F. We try to kill every moment of boredom with mobile devices.
G. When not satisfied with your state, you're seeking and engaged.
