The Multitasking Meditator

In contrast to the book, the Internet incentivized a reliance on skimming, multi-tasking, superficial thinking, and short-term memory rather than deeper understanding.

Instead, meditation apps most often lead users to “reinterpret their experiences as mindful, even when digital platforms ironically lure them into practices that are distracted and compulsive,” writes anthropologist Rebecca Jablonsky.

The quest to design an app that facilitates mindful attention is “impossible to fulfill as the affordances of the smartphone and its suite of digital tools capture attention in equal—if not greater—measure as meditation apps claim to give it back,” concludes Jablonsky.