Colloquium

Dr. Erin Westgate, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Florida

Title:  Why Boredom is interesting

Abstract:  Boredom is extremely common, especially in education and the workplace. Yet despite its prevalence, basic questions remain unanswered. For instance, is boredom good or bad? A growing body of evidence suggests boredom leads to positive outcomes, including creativity and prosocial behavior. However, a contradictory body of evidence suggests that boredom also leads to negative outcomes, such as willingness to harm one’s self and others. To date, whether boredom is ultimately harmful or beneficial is not known, in part because boredom itself has not, historically, been well understood. According the Meaning and Attention Components (MAC) model, boredom signals a lack of meaningful cognitive engagement. If so, then under optimal circumstances, boredom may help people seek out beneficial solutions that restore meaning and attention. In this respect, boredom resembles pain; an unpleasant but useful signal to seek change. However, it can also lead to short-term solutions (e.g., risk-seeking, sadism) that temporarily reduce boredom without resolving its long-term causes, creating a maladaptive cycle of boredom and harmful behavior. By better understanding what boredom is, we can better understand why people get bored, and what happens when they do.