Is the Attention Economy Stealing Our Time?

On average we spend around six hours and forty minutes on our screen devices daily. This means that roughly 40% of our awake hours are spent on screens. But is that really because the Attention Economy is stealing our time?

The attention economy focuses on human attention being the limited resource which platforms will try to capture, package and sell to adverts. All notifications, autoplay counters and infinite feeds are all created with this goal in mind.

This guide will tell you what the attention economy actually is, how platforms keep you on their sites, what the screen time data shows, what it does to your concentration and mental health, and how to reclaim your time.

What is the Attention Economy?

Although this concept predates smartphones, Nobel winning psychologist, Herbert Simon, coined the term in 1971. He explained how there’s a scarcity of attention as there’s so much information to take in. The more information you are receiving, the less attention you have left.

In 1997 Physicist Michael Goldhaber explained further. He said that information is now no longer scarce, but rather our attention is. This explains why there are so many free online services.

Ultimately, the attention economy is about incentivising advertising based companies to get people to spend more time and attention on their products. Platforms like Facebook, Google and TikTok have become powerful due to having such a large audience to control. Advertisers will pay a lot to get their message across.

They aren’t selling you the app, they’re selling you the next few seconds!

How the Attention Economy Gets You to Spend Time

Capturing people’s attention is an art and takes engineering. There are two main reasons.

Algorithms Designed to Engage

Algorithms have been designed to engage users with content. They will display content based on how much engagement it has received. Dentsu are predicting 71.6% of ad spending will be done via an algorithm by 2026, increasing to 76% by 2028.

Psychologist Gloria Mark from UC Irvine describes this as attention traps. Once someone has found a funny TikTok they will want to find more. With social media offering constant easy access it can be very addictive, according to Anna Lembke, an addiction specialist from Stanford.

Notifications

A study by Reviews.org found that Americans check their phone 186 times daily. Whilst BCG found that Indian Users check their phones at least 80 times daily.

Many companies will tailor the times they send alerts to when you are most likely to have spare seconds of your attention.

Although each time you’re checking your phone seems small, this can add up to hundreds of interruptions in one day.

How Much Time Are We Losing?

Note: The figures will vary depending on the method of calculating. InMobi found that Indians spend a little over 4 hours on their smartphone however EY found that they spent around 5 hours, with nearly 70% of this being on Social Media, Gaming & Video. Either way the trend is the same.

EY estimated that in 2024 Indians spent a trillion hours on their phones, which contributed to a $29.4 billion media industry.

In India the attention economy is the main use for phones.

What Effect Does the Attention Economy Have on Concentration and Mental Health?

Less Time on Tasks

In 2004 Mark did her first study into screen attention. She found that people would typically spend 2.5 minutes on a screen. However, combining studies between 2016-2020 the average time we spend on one screen has dropped to 47 seconds. One study in 2016 found we spend a median of 40 seconds on one screen.

Note: This is how long we spend on a screen before changing tasks. It isn’t a biological limitation.

However, it can take almost half an hour to refocus after an interruption. Around half of interruptions are self caused as we are tempted to check emails or post.

Read More : The Marvels Of The Human Brain: Structure and function 

Not All Screens Are The Same

There is a more complex relationship between screen time and mental health. A study by JAMA found that preteens who had addictive behaviours when using social media, phones and video games suffered from worsened mental health. However, there was no correlation between overall screen time.

A review of reviews in 2025 found that problematic use and passive use had the strongest correlation with depression and anxiety however this can vary between individuals.

Lembke explains addiction as compulsively using something despite it causing harm.Whilst social media addiction isn’t an official diagnosis in the DSM, the SHUT Clinic have treated 611 young people for gaming, gambling and social media addiction amongst others. A study on medical students in Telangana found that those who had 4+ hours screen time daily had a significant association with high risk of mobile addiction.

It’s not necessarily the amount of time we are spending, it’s the compulsion and passiveness.

Is It All the Attention Economy’s Fault?

No. Whilst tech companies and algorithms play a large role, Mark explains that the hyperlinked nature of the internet can make us jump between related topics. Personality, emotions and social needs can also cause us to get distracted.

She also explains that it’s not black and white. We are happiest doing simple and engaging tasks, therefore stopping using social media may not be the only option.

Honestly it’s a bit of both. The system is designed to lure us in and we are wired to get lured in.

How to Get Your Time Back

You don’t need to go cold turkey, instead making small changes can help. Try:

• Disable notifications. Experts recommend turning off notifications, removing apps from your home screen and using native screen time features.
  
• Set a time limit. Mark emphasises setting a time limit on tasks that usually distract you such as social media and games.
  
• Have a goal. We are goal orientated so having a goal will keep you focused.
  
• Know your peak times. Everyone has their own peak and low times. Try doing difficult tasks during your peak times and create some downtime.
  
• Go for a short walk outside. Just 20 minutes outside can help reduce stress and increase creativity.
  

Read More : Top 8 Techniques To Study In Winter: Tips to stay focused

Data & Trends

WARC are predicting global ad spend to increase to $1.34 Trillion in 2026 (up 11.9%). Social Media is predicted to increase the most at 21.3% to $394.6 Billion. This is why social media feeds are optimised to keep you on the site.

Alphabet, Amazon and Meta are predicted to gain 59.7% of global ad spend (excluding China). This means there are only a few companies competing for our human minutes.

Different forecasters have different numbers. Dentsu are predicting around $1.06 Trillion. Digital is also predicted to be 69%. This is likely due to the methods used to calculate the numbers but both show the same trend.

India may be ahead of the curve. Per Capita Ad Spend in India is predicted to be just $13 compared to $1,395 in the US.

Final Thoughts on Getting Your Time Back

The attention economy isn’t really stealing your time. It’s taking advantage of your curiosity, loneliness and boredom and exacerbating these issues. Whilst the data shows there is an impact, you can gain back a lot of your time by being aware and making small changes.

However, what is our attention really for? Every hour has a purpose and we all want meaning in our lives. Many people find that taking some time out to reflect on your soul, Creator and why we were born as humans gives back your focus. Try reading “Gyan Ganga” and “Way of Living” by Saint Rampal Ji Maharaj and see how you can live a purposeful life.