The motivating effects of distraction on task performance.

Two studies were conducted to assess whether distraction has drivelike effects on task performance. In both, the effects of distraction over all trials interacted significantly with the nature of the task; jlistraction tended to facilitate the performances of simple tasks and signirkantiy~impaired performance on complex tasks. Moreover, analyses focusing upon drive carryover effects generally replicated these effects; when distraction was momentarily suspended, performance on simple tasks was facilitated in both studies (compared to nondistraction controls, joint p<.OS), whereas performance on the complex task used in Study 2 was still impaired. Results of Study 2 indicate that lack of impairment on the complex task in Study 1 on such trials was due to practice effects of repeated testing. These results indicate that distraction (a) has drivelike properties and (b) does not invariably impair performance. These results are discussed in terms of recent research and theorizing in the area of social facilitation.