Widespread A.D.D. - Breathing Space Blog

We've reached the point where a typical person in our society now has Attention Deficit Disorder, culturally induced. The rising decibel level in public spaces, as documented over the last 25 years, all but confirms that our society has embraced a perpetually higher level of noise. Added to that, the number of messages that each of us is bombarded with on a daily basis has no end.

From billboards, to bus panels, to ads over urinals, at all times, in all places, someone is vying for our attention. E-mail and the Internet have exacerbated the problem, but even those who are not online and not wired are subject to cultural Attention Deficit Disorder. Why? Because the general level of message bombardment in our society is exceedingly high.

Retrieve a person from a primitive society, someone who has never been exposed to television or telephones, or, if you could, retrieve someone from 1918, and today’s information bombardment would have immediate impact: I would be surprised if such visitors to our culture did not have near-instant nervous breakdown.