Concentration of attention. Training and development concentration (exercise)

The concentration of attention is the ability of a person to focus on a specific lesson, as well as maintain certain information in short-term memory reserves. If this property has certain violations, then the person becomes scattered and insufficient.

What attention happens

Attention is one of the most important characteristics of human mental activity. By nature, it can have the following varieties:

arbitrary is a conscious and targeted concentration of attention on any object or action that are associated with interest, professional activities, training, or other necessities;
involuntary - emerges unconsciously, due to any non-standard event or in a new environment;
post-proof - arises automatically in the case when the concentration on any object occurs with regular frequency (work, study, etc.).

Speaking about the types of concentration of attention, we can say that they completely duplicate the classification, which is given above.

Violation of the concentration of attention

Not always a person manages to focus on performing any action, even if it represents an objective need. This is definitely a violation. Reducing the concentration of attention leads to a diffusion, which is a few species:

True - attention is constantly switched from one object to another, without lingering at the time for a long time (the case when this condition is caused by nervous or physical exhaustion, as well as strong stress, is called prostration).
Imaginary - arises as a result of concentration on some personal thoughts, as a result of which the concentration on external objects is not possible
Student - Fast switching from one process to another (most characteristic of schoolchildren and students, from where it happened).
Street - slow switching (caused by violations of mental processes associated with age).
Motivational-conditioned - we are talking about consciously disconnecting attention from a particular object or process that causes unpleasant or unwanted associations.
Electoral - over time, the usual things cease to pay attention to the person's attention (it can be about the processes in the body or household phenomena).

How to develop the concentration of attention

Watching the process of growing up the child, it can be concluded that the concentration of attention becomes more and more powerful with age. Based on perennial research and regulations were drawn up, which determine the duration of school lessons, and later university steam. Nevertheless, even at the achievement of a certain age, some individuals are quite difficult to focus and hold attention on the same object or lesson. In this case, the development of the concentration of attention will require some efforts both by the teachers (if it comes to child) and on the part of the subject itself (if it comes to adulthood).

Improving concentration abilities is achieved through continuous and diligent training. The concentration of attention in children is most often produced by itself. Even those children who initially find it difficult to get used to prolonged and monotonous classes, over time get used to it. The educational process is aimed at completing education, a person was ready for employment not only from the point of view of fundamental knowledge, but also from the point of view of self-discipline. If, with age, a person does not acquire similar abilities, he needs to resort to training by special exercises.

How to improve the concentration of attention

High concentration of attention is achieved not only by diligent training, but also the creation of comfortable conditions. The fact is that any trifle (extraneous noise, phone call, etc.) can withdraw a person from a concentrated state, after which it will be not so easy to return to the previous mode of operation. Thus, wanting to concentrate at work, resort to the following practical advice:

Keep a notebook or a piece of paper on which your current action will be written. Each time you are once at once, this prompt will help you return to the right direction.
Choose a quiet place to work so that extraneous noises are inseparable for you. If you work at home or in a crowded office, then there is nothing galloping to use earplugs.
On your desk there must be only the most necessary objects for work. Remove everything you can distract you - souvenirs, photos and so on.
The guidance of effective work is a feeling of comfort and good health. Your workplace should be equipped with comfortable furniture, as well as to be in a well-lit and ventilated room with a comfortable temperature. Also do not forget that the body constantly needs feeding food and liquid.
Always make a list of tasks that you need to perform. At the same time, it is important for nothing to be distracted, and most importantly - not to postpone the started for later.

Fault Concentration - Exercises

Sometimes in the course of their professional, creative or household activities, people discover scattered and nonsense. In this case, it becomes necessary to develop and workout such a property as a concentration of attention. Exercises offered by psychologists allow you to develop the necessary qualities:

For the first exercise you will need a pencil and sheet of paper. Start the line, trying to concentrate on it all your attention. When you understand what was distracted, draw a zigzag. You will have a drawing, something that resembles a cardiogram that will help you assess how scattered.
If you have to go to the bus for a long time or you are standing in line, spend time with benefit. Choose some object (poster, window, door, and so on), set a certain time on the timer (for a start there will be a couple of minutes) and try to watch and think about it exactly until the alarm signal is heard. Each time you manage to perform this task, without distracted by a second, increase the time interval.
It often happens that, reading a book (even very interesting), we are distracted by extraneous thoughts and reflections. Therefore, always hold a pencil with you. Noticing that you think about something else, except for the plot, put the margin on the fields opposite the place where you ended the conscious reading. In addition, finished the page, mentally repeat its content.

Tests to determine the concentration of attention

Concentration and stability of attention are important characteristics not only for professional activities, but also for other human life areas. In order to evaluate these characteristics, psychologists have developed special tests that are used when interviewing in large firms. Also, they can be passed independently to determine their degree of concentration:

Test Münsterberg allows you to determine the level of care. The subject is issued a sheet of paper on which there are plenty of letters without gaps, among which there are both chaotic combinations and congregative words (23). For two minutes, a person must find them all and emphasize the pencil, after which the result obtained is compared with the correct answer.
Test Schulier is a table size of 5 * 5, in the cells of which in chaotic order are placed by values \u200b\u200bfrom 1 to 25. The subject must specify as soon as possible in sequentially each of them. At the same time, it is forbidden to make any marks. Results are estimated on the basis of time spent on completing the task.
The test "10 words" suggests that a certain sequence of words is read by the test. They are not interconnected by meaning or grammatically. Further, the individual will be asked to reproduce these words. The sequence of them does not matter much.

Training attention

Training concentration of attention is an objective need for those who want to work effectively without being distracted by extraneous classes. For this purpose, the following techniques that can be used in the interruptions between the performance of their employment duties are fitted:

Learn to relax. To do this, set the timer for 5 minutes and take a convenient position (sitting or lying). During this time, your body should not produce any movement (even involuntary). If you managed this experience, then gradually increase the period of such a beneficial holiday.
Sit straight and pull your hand aside. Turn your head and look at your fingers for a minute. At the same time, you should not have absolutely no extraneous thoughts in your head.
Fill the glass with water to almost the edges. Pull your hand with a vessel forward and concentrate your attention on it. Your task is not to spill water for a minute.

The presented method of training allows not only to improve the concentration of attention, but also to lead the nervous system into equilibrium.

Charging for the brain

High concentration of attention is the result of the active work of the brain. Just as the body needs morning charging, the human mind has the same need. When going to work in the morning, or while in transport, do the following set of exercises:

Consider from one to 100 and back (over time, the task can be complicated, saying, for example, only even numbers, or those that are divisible for three).
Choose at all the letter from the alphabet and remember all the words that begin with it (if you own a foreign language, you can use it by performing the task, and you can also enter restrictions in parts of speech).
Without thinking, name 20 names (further complicate the task, choosing only men's or female).
Choose any letter of the alphabet to which you need will be called a male and female name, settlement, animal, bird and product (it is not just a good gymnastics for mind, but also a great idea to pass time with the child).

Please note that all the shown exercises need to be performed as quickly as possible without thinking too long.

Physiological aspects

The concentration of attention is not always connected with human mental abilities and its psychological features. An important role in this issue also plays the physiological component. That is why the improvement in the concentration of attention is inextricably linked with the normalization of the lifestyle and the day of the day:

Take a rule to get a full dream. If you get asleep late and get up early, you can hardly stand 100% in your mental or creative activity at 100%. Let 8-hour recreation be your unshakable rule.
Pay attention to your diet. Try to include complex carbohydrates in it, which are slowly processed, constantly fueling the body as a whole and the brain in particular. Also before the start of the labor day, be sure to drink a cup of coffee or eat some black chocolate.
Highlight time for classes that give you pleasure. It can be a walk, shopping, hobbies, fitness, watching movies, listening to music and much more. Positive emotions contribute to the production of dopamine hormone, which has a beneficial effect on attention.
If none of the listed ways did not properly influence the concentration process, it is necessary to consult a doctor who will recommend you special drugs.

The development of the concentration of attention is possible not only by means of special exercises or techniques, but also by constant self-control. So, travel to gnaw nails, knocking on the table, actively gesticulate or chatting down during the seating.

An important step towards high concentration is the acquisition of emotional equilibrium. Try to protect yourself from negativity and stress, and also relax more. Take a rule to listen to calm tool music. Also surround yourself with objects of those colors that have a beneficial effect on the nervous system and emotional state (for example, green and blue). Also try not to watch TV shows that carry a negative color.

For high-quality mental work it is necessary to develop both hemispheres of the brain. To do this, it is very useful to periodically change hands when performing any ordinary tasks. So, taking a toothbrush or a spoon in the left hand (and for the left-hander - right), you will cause the activity of those parts of the brain that have not been previously involved.