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  • October 7, 2020
  • Editorial
  • Behavioral Scientist

Time Confetti and the Broken Promise of Leisure

By: Ashley Whillans
  • Format:Electronic
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Abstract

It’s true: we have more time for leisure than we did fifty years ago. But leisure has never been less relaxing, mostly because of the disintermediating effects of our screens. Technology saves us time, but it also takes it away. This is known as the autonomy paradox. We adopt mobile technologies to gain autonomy over when and how long we work, yet, ironically, we end up working all the time. Long blocks of free time we used to enjoy are now interrupted constantly by our smart watches, phones, tablets, and laptops. This situation taxes us cognitively, and fragments our leisure time in a way that makes it hard to use this time for something that will relieve stress or make us happy. Researchers call this phenomenon time confetti, which amounts to little bits of seconds and minutes lost to unproductive multitasking. Each bit alone seems not very bad. Collectively, though, all that confetti adds up to something more pernicious than you might expect.

Keywords

Time And Wellbeing; Leisure; Time Management; Work-Life Balance; Well-being

Citation

Whillans, Ashley. "Time Confetti and the Broken Promise of Leisure." Behavioral Scientist (October 7, 2020).
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About The Author

Ashley V. Whillans

Negotiation, Organizations & Markets
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More from the Author
  • Joy and Rigor in Behavioral Science By: Hanne K. Collins, Ashley V. Whillans and Leslie K. John
  • Research: A Little Recognition Can Provide a Big Morale Boost By: Shibeal O'Flaherty, Michael Sanders and Ashley V. Whillans
  • Extension Request Avoidance Increases Time Stress among Women By: Ashley V. Whillans, Jaewon Yoon, Aurora Turek and Grant E. Donnelly
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