Attention Hijacked: Using Mindfulness to Reclaim Your Brain from Tech

by Erica B. Marcus

Technology surrounds us every day: a phone alarm wakes us up, an electronic calendar tracks assignment deadlines, GPS directs us to the new dentist’s office, social media keeps us connected to friends and family, and streaming platforms make sure we’re never without something new to binge-watch. Our devices and apps can make life much more convenient and entertaining.

But for years, scientists have warned that too much screen time may have negative effects on our health. With portable devices and remote learning, it is even more difficult to put down electronics. Being intentional about how and when to unplug can help teens and young adults to protect their physical and mental wellbeing in a world where screens and technology are increasingly becoming necessities rather than just conveniences.

Attention Hijacked offers a roadmap for those deciding how they want to deal with technology, exploring the ways technology affects the individual, dispelling common misinformation, and using this knowledge to make personalized decisions. Page Plus links in the book lead to mindfulness and meditation audio clips. Using mindfulness techniques, this book gives readers the power to take charge of their technology use.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Health, Psychology, Mental Health

272 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 3, 2022

Reviews

[Melany · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book fell flat for me. Yes, I 110% agree that technology is taking over our attention and that we need to reduce our screen time. Picking up this book, I expected some great things to help accomplish that. However, nothing in this book was new to me or a new inventive way to tackle the topic. Possibly others will get more use out of this book than I have as I agree, we should reduce our time on phones/tablets/computers. However, this just didn't give me any new technique or information about it that I didn't alrwady know.

This ARC was given to me from NetGalley to read and review and give my personal opinions on this book. All statements above are my own and based solely on my own opinions after reading the book.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a book supposedly written for teens, but the first fifth or so of the book is aimed toward… adults, I guess? It contains information that all but the most tech-challenged people will already know, but then the remainder of the book is for teens… it’s all over the map.

When this book sticks to the “mindfulness” discussion, it’s quite helpful, and I was able to glean some decent information from it.

On the other hand, it takes so many long detours into simply describing what technology does and does not do, including discussions of specific apps, that it takes a very long time to say anything. On top of that, half of the book will be outdated extremely quickly.

Added to this is the author’s fixation on “social justice” and turning teens into online crusaders. From my own experience, I can tell you that such a mindset often has the exact opposite effect of mindfulness and is generally making the internet more volatile, not less.

Overall, I didn’t end up finishing because the small grains of helpful info didn’t seem worth slogging through everything else.

[John Driscoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is primarily for the audio version read by Lauren Ezzo, though midway through I also checked out the print book from my library for the sake of comparison.

This book does a great job demonstrating the ways that technology has changed people's attention spans and altered the way their brains work. It also does a pretty good job explaining why, especially when it demonstrates the way tech companies manipulate their knowledge of human psychology and brain chemistry to achieve their desired results (usually for people to spend more time using a particular website, app, game, etc. so that they can be shown more ads and be separated from more money).

As for my thoughts on the audio version specifically, I think Lauren Ezzo does a good job on narration for the most part. She reads in a natural and easily understood way, though at times she goes a bit faster than I'd like. However, in some ways I think this is better read than listened to.
The print book contains illustrations, most of which are just cute little clip art-style pictures so you don't really lose anything if you don't see them. However, there are a couple of illustrations that are actually helpful to see, like the one on page 104 that shows how nerve cells communicate. There are also numerous QR codes scattered throughout the book, which obviously you don't get with the audio version. There's also a technology use survey which the reader is meant to take, which doesn't translate very well to audio. Most of all though, I found it a bit hard to absorb some of the information by listening, which is weird because I do a lot more listening by audiobook than reading physical books anymore. For whatever reason though, with this particular book I find it a bit harder to absorb info by listening.

[Ari · Rating 3 out of 5]

audio is not a good format for this book…

[Wren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Erica B. Marcus is a seeker. She has been on a quest for decades and has a lot of experience in mindfulness and other paths for being grounded, focused, calm, and in other ways a good steward of her attention and emotions.

She loans her experience and wisdom to young readers on the topic of mindful use of technology. She has a lot of great ideas. If anything, I find the book a little overwhelming (and I have been studying mindfulness through yoga, Buddhism, devotional readings, etc. for decades). There are a few illustrations and some graphic design features (headings, lists, shaded text boxes, space for short-answer journaling exercises, etc.) to break up the heavy presence of the writing itself, but it's still a bit overwhelming. There are also QR codes to offer additional resources to the reader.

It would be challenging to read the whole book in a week. I advise readers to take a chapter a week so that they can reflect on which suggestions to adopt and so they can reflect on the results of any changes to behaviors and attitudes.

The ideal readers IMHO would be those aged 12 to 17, but I found the insights and suggestions useful to me as an older adult.

The basic structure of the book is Problem / Solution (with Cause/Effect imbedded in that). Here is the TOC:

Introduction
Ch. 1 "I Heart Screens"
Ch. 2 "How Tech Companies Hijack Our Attention"
Ch. 3 "Myth-Busting and Fact-Finding"
Ch. 4 "What Is Mindfulness and Why Is It Such a Big Deal?"
Ch. 5 Creating a Mindful Tech Diet
Ch. 6 Attention Hijacks and Mindful Approaches
Ch. 7 Living Your Best life
Moving Forward
Acknowledgements
Source Notes
Recommended Resources
Index

[Jonathon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll be gentle with the star rating. This was a quick library pick-up. I am not the intended audience. The intended audience is perhaps a teacher looking for a tool to help her discuss balancing the use of technology and utilizing mindfulness or a teenager who after being closely supervised while online has now been given a laptop for her personal use. The mindfulness part of the book is pretty light. Most of the book talks about how technology can steal your focus and a few ideas to regain control. The author tries to talk in the young people's lingo, but it sounds ridiculous. At first, it was grating, but eventually, I started to find it hilarious. I kept picturing that meme with Steve Buscemi. "Hello, my fellow kids"

[Hilson]

A valuable resource for establishing a healthy connection between young adults mental/ emotional wellbeing with modern day technology gadgets. The author identifies how technology can be beneficial source of information acquisition, better expression of oneself and building connections with other individuals. However at the same time, Erica stresses how technology has stolen the attention of many users leading them to lower work productivity and potentially damaging one’s self image. Through her own telling of experience and series of mindfulness techniques, she is determined to push readers to become more in control of their technology use.

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a 30 year old adult, I enjoyed this book and found the advice within it very valuable. I've struggled with my relationship with tech and this book provides thoughful imformation and journal prompts to lead you to make your own decisions about your personal relationship with technology. I can't speak to how the primary intended audience of a teen might respond, but as someone who has already identified a lot of negative feelings about certain aspects of my relationship with technology, I found this book very helpful and would highly recommend it.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would have been a 3.5 if not for the last two chapters and the journal prompts. I wish I'd known before using it that it would be focused on teens so it didn't exactly fit my place in life but the lessons are still super useful and good to keep in mind. If I thought I could get away with it I would reccomend it to my younger sister because I think it is a good book for teens but I also know it is hard for teennagers to have an open mind, especially when they percieve it as an adult telling them something about life.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Attention Hijacked is a must read for teens and those who teach, counsel or parent them. In a world where technology constantly demands our attention, it is increasingly difficult to be aware of one's own technology usage. However, teens often balk when adults tell them to put down their phone or turn off the iPad. A seasoned educator and mindfulness coach, Erica B. Marcus takes the ideal approach. Never judgemental, she spends a chapter talking about the benefits of technology. When she covers research about the downsides of technology, she is reasonable and not alarmist. Instead, she offers practical, accessible strategies that are rooted in mindfulness. Teens and adults will learn to step back from their technology use and, without shame, take note of its benefits and also its pitfalls. I have been teaching Middle School English for over fifteen years, and I can imagine my students letting down their guards and having many "aha" moments as they read this book; it would be a perfect addition to a health and wellness program or a course on media literacy. Even though this book is geared towards teens, it also made me reflect on my own technology usage and to schedule more technology-free time for myself and my family. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to become more self-aware about the role of technology in their lives.

[Melody Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not just for teens

Technology has become omnipresent in our lives. This book helps us identify our habits around tech and offers up suggestions and strategies for managing those habits to allow ourselves to have a healthier relationship with technology and social media. The author backs up her suggestions with studies and real-life examples.
The book’s target audience seems to be teens and young adults but I believe it could help all age ranges- from adults who are always glued to their phones, to younger children who are just beginning to navigate electronics and the Internet. I’ve recognized my phone and app addictions and have started incorporating some of the learnings in this book and have found positive benefits from it including more mental clarity and ability to focus.
Would recommend this book!

[Ellen Wood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this as part of a book club, and found some of the content truly helpful, with a lot of emphasis on the ways we can be more intentional about tech use. It gets preachy and new-agey at times, with tones of vilifying commerce and the use of market intelligence as inherently evil and manipulative (while using those same tactics for social justice causes are heralded as beneficial) and a good deal of time focusing on meditation practices rather than going deeper into the neuroscience that is only touched on. However it is a book geared toward teenagers so I can concede that she’s speaking to her target audience.

[MC Book · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very in-depth book with lots of information. Unfortunately, it is a little too in depth for my teenagers to be interested in reading. I've found it is best to read with them in small pieces, or they tend to shut down. This is a good idea, but honestly maybe a bit too much info to keep teens attention (at least teens these days who are used to having their attention hijacked by technology ;) )

[Lee-ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley for review. Attention Hijacked deals with the ubiquitous nature of screens and technology in today's world. Marcus discusses both good and bad aspects of technology for the teen set, but adults can have a few take aways too. While this would not be a book to sit and read cover to cover, this is something to grab and discuss certain chapters with teens. Very accessible language and activities.

[Kiwi♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book overall was good for readers trying to set mindfulness of new teenagers. The tips and everything in this book were wonderful. The further reading I found was really helpful. But often times the author was repeating topics over and over. And on a few points during the book the way the author "spoke" was like we were hopeless teenagers. But overall I enjoyed this book and I give it a 3.5. (Rounded on the stars review)

[Cailyn L · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a well researched book and easy to read. Unfortunately, I really don’t think it was for me. Maybe someone younger, or someone who is just starting out trying to break away from technology. For me, it didn’t feel like any new information and it was sorely, sorely lacking in actionable advice.

[P Patel]

The book is mainly for teens. I like how the author explains things but it can be too boring for adults. Seems I already knew almost everything from reading these books - indistactable, deep work and digital minimalism.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid book full of honest and real ideas. This should be on most high school kids reading lists. It kept my interest and was easy to understand what the author was trying to convey.

[Rhonda · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book target audience is students and Young people.

[hanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of good ideas & activities to consider how “hijacked” by tech we are. I wouldn’t say this had any new or surprising info, but it’s fine for its target audience (teens)

[StarszBooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Jacob Svetz · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping this book would give me something, but it was ultimately a nothing.

[Rolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Targeted towards a teen audience, this is very clear and thoughtful, and has some great journal prompts to get teens thinking about how to be responsible tech users.

[grub · Rating 3 out of 5]

was hoping to learn something from this but it was written for much too young an audience and felt kinda condescending the whole time

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this. It's sorta a self-help book, but without starting from the idea that you need to fix a problem. It's about mindfulness -- noticing what you are doing, knowing your values and goals, and checking to see if those two aspects of your life are in balance. And the author has noticed that technology has a way of creeping past its usefulness, and so has looked into ways to maintain boundaries.

But she's just as keen to use technology to help with her goals, so alongside the bits on how to pull back are ways to lean in.

I'm a little worried about how it reads to actual teens, who might be reluctant to hear any adult cautions on phone use as anything other than negative.

[Bonnie Grover · Rating 2 out of 5]

Attention Hijacked is a book written for young people. It is a roadmap for those deciding how they want to deal with technology. Throughout the book, the author equates technology with eating. When we eat too much of a good thing or use food as an escape, we feel yucky. The same is true for technology. We have to give our brain time to process. Being intentional about how and when to unplug can help teens and young adults protect their physical and mental wellbeing. This can be a challenge in a time when screens and technology are increasingly becoming necessities rather than just conveniences.
For myself, finding a balance is the key to a healthy relationship with technology. I don’t feel there were any mind-blowing revelations in this book, but I do hope that by reading it, young people will feel empowered to take charge of their own relationships with technology.