It is estimated that humans spend half of their waking hours mind wandering. The human mind wanders at three different states which are past experiences like about some fond memories with friends; fantasising or making plans about the future and the other is abstract thinking which is neither related to the past nor future. Abstract thinking is related to our objects, ideas and principles which are not physically present.
Being stuck at home with monotonous tasks can make the human mind wander more often. As we force ourselves to maintain our attention in our work, classes or any given tasks, our mind cannot fully comprehend the present moment and we often happen to wander with various thoughts and feelings.
At times we tend to lose our attentiveness and drift away from the given task or our surroundings. When our attention switches from the current consciousness to unrelated feelings or thoughts it is called mind wandering.
In 1994, Daniel M Wegner coined a theory called ‘ironic process of mental control’. The theory implies that wandering happens in two forms of the intentional fixation of the consciousness- intentional concentration and intentional thought suppression. Intentional concentration is the voluntary attention to keep our focus at one place. Whereas, suppressing a thought eventually results in thinking of something else rather than thinking of what we do not want to think.
We often have thoughts and feelings which are unrelated to the present moment, particularly when we are bored or our thoughts prioritise other important things. The unintentional mind wandering can happen without our consciousness.
Insomnia, anxiety, stress and trouble in focusing might have increased during the pandemic with more restrictions. During lectures or classes instead of concentrating on the topic we might be creating scenarios and fantasies in our mind - your eyes are fixed on the teacher but your mind can be wandering far off to a different place or time.
Our restless mind can often hamper our performance in class and activities due to less attentiveness, but at times mind wandering can be the gateway to endless possibilities of insightful ideas.
Mind wandering is beneficial for breaking from mundane tasks
Mind wandering can certainly compromise our performance which requires demanding attention, but because of the vast imaginations we can bounce back with a different view. Such thoughts can be beneficial for coping and developing insight which can increase our creativity.
In the philosophical theory of mind wandering by Irving, he says that if we focus all the time on our goals, we can miss important information. So, having a free association thought process that randomly generates memories and imaginative experiences can lead you to new ideas and insights.
With many of us experiencing monotony, restrictions and social isolation at present, the boundlessness and intractability of our mind can sometimes be a great escape. Mind wandering can be taken as a virtue - it can really take you from point A to B allowing elevated and refreshed attention from our monotonous activities.
In a finding published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal, it suggests that turning our external environment and allowing our internal thoughts to move freely increases the functioning of the brain and promotes relaxation and exploration.
“Not all who wander are lost” by JRRTolkein in his poem ‘The Fellowship of the ring’ said it right.
