If asked about potent battles between pain and work productivity – how would you respond? Would it surprise you to learn that that pain literally slows down performance? New research shows why it’s so. 
You’ve likely noticed that a head ache or chronic back pain tends to distract your focus – regardless of work deadlines. Blame your brain. German researcher, Ulrike Bingle, at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf … points to the brain’s problem here. How so?
If one brain area could be targeted for this problem … working memory takes the rap. It turns out that both pain and productivity process in your working memory … and when these two compete … preference goes to pain.
While thresholds differ … still it can be said that while your working memory processes pain … it cannot at the same time help you with many assigned visual tasks. Has it happened to you?
Researchers from the
Fascinating, Ellen. I've certainly experienced how even constant, low-level pain can distract and sap energy. For me it was back pain. Luckily, I've found solid non-invasive ways to address it.
In general, efforts to improve productivity have to address personal and health issues. For example, issues like depression make it very hard to focus and accomplish...
Posted by: Matthew Cornell | November 22, 2007 6:59 AM | Permalink to Comment