High on Health: Boredom and Your Brain – the Surprising Health Benefits

Boredom isn’t just a state of the mind; it’s a healthy activity for the brain. For thousands of years, people had no choice but to spend time with their thoughts – something modern-day humans are losing the knack for, as every spare minute can be filled with entertainment, news, or notifications. Every great thinker, from Isaac Newton to Abraham Lincoln to Albert Einstein, spent long stretches of time walking, reflecting, or simply thinking. Today, however, people go out of their way to get out of their own heads and be distracted by outside stimulation.

Escaping Boredom at All Costs

Sure, boredom isn’t always a pleasant thing, and not everyone wants to be left alone with their thoughts – at least, not for very long. The University of Virginia conducted a series of experiments in which they had participants spend between six and 15 minutes alone with nothing to do but think. In these tests, they found that most enjoyed a little alone time.

But in one of the experiments, participants were placed alone in a room for 15 minutes with nothing to do but think. Unlike the other tests, however, this time they also had a button they could press that would deliver an electrical shock.

Out of the 18 males in the experiment, 12 (67%) shocked themselves at least once. Out of the 24 women tested, six (25%) also shocked themselves at least one time. As PubMed, which published the study, explained: “Most people seem to prefer to be doing something rather than nothing, even if that something is negative.”

Risky Behaviors

For many years, scientists paid little attention to boredom because it seemed like an ordinary part of life, but that concept has changed. Researchers now believe being bored is a distinct emotional state, not simply laziness, depression, or apathy. Instead, it is an unpleasant feeling that tells us we want to be doing something but can't find an activity that feels satisfying or meaningful.

Academics have distinguished two types of boredom, explained Scientific American. State boredom is the temporary feeling everyone experiences from time to time, such as when waiting in a long line or listening to a dull lecture. Trait boredom refers to a greater tendency than others to become bored across a wider range of situations.

Research has found that people who are more prone to boredom are more likely to have other health issues such as binge eating, taking risks while driving, struggling in school, and abusing drugs or alcohol. So, being bored isn’t always just an inconvenience; it can influence behavior in some pretty serious ways. Still, researchers believe boredom has a purpose, and people shouldn’t always try to escape from it. It acts as a signal that something in our current situation isn’t working. The challenge is how we respond. Do we seek out meaningful activities or turn to unhealthy or risky behaviors?

What Happens to the Bored Brain?

"Boredom is just the reverse side of fascination: both depend on being outside rather than inside a situation, and one leads to the other."  ~ Arthur Schopenhauer

Wool gathering, lost in thought, dazing … these terms and more are our excuses for tuning out the outside world and bringing our thoughts inward. What happens to our brains during these times? PubMed published a study after measuring the brain activity of volunteers who completed a simple computer task while wearing an EEG cap. At random times, they were asked whether they were focused on the task or if their minds had wandered. They used the brain activity results to compare when they were paying attention and when they were lost in thoughts.

When participants’ minds wandered, their brains were temporarily disconnected from the outside environment, according to the results. The brain also had to work harder to refocus when they returned to the task at hand. The study suggested this type of disconnection could explain why people sometimes provide misinformation or make mistakes.

In another study, researchers found engaging in simple activities that allow the mind to wander may help people make new connections between ideas. “These data suggest that engaging in simple external tasks that allow the mind to wander may facilitate creative problem solving,” PubMed concluded.

Modern life promises we'll never have to be bored again. There's always another notification, headline, or funny cat video waiting for our attention. But boredom isn’t the evil it’s made out to be. A little alone time is not only good for the soul - it’s also good for the brain.