Tracking Brain Activity at Work
Is productivity increasing at the cost of human health and privacy?
Monitoring employees' neural activity during dangerous tasks has gained attention in recent years. For professions like construction and aviation, alerting workers when fatigue levels become critical can save lives. However, if such tracking extends beyond safety concerns into the broader corporate world, it raises ethical questions.
Fatigue is well known to hinder productivity, and with productivity and focus directly linked to revenue, concerns arise about the use of neurological data as a business strategy. As neuroscience-based tools, such as productivity and focus trackers, become more common in workplaces, the boundary between improving safety and invading privacy becomes increasingly unclear.
While boosting productivity can benefit both employers and employees if implemented responsibly, without proper safeguards, such practices could easily be misused.
Read more:
-
The AttentiveU Glasses, developed by researchers at MIT, measure brain activity through EEG electrodes behind the user’s ears. This, with the additional feature of eye tracking, provides instant feedback on engagement. The user can even be notified of lowered engagement through sounds and haptics, sometimes before they can consciously realize they are slipping.
So far, this wearable seems like a device for individuals who want to boost their productivity and awareness. But, is it possible that certain workplaces could start requiring technology like this? And even on an individual level, what could the impacts be on mental health? Will it create increased mindfulness, paranoia, or a varying combination of both?
-
Researchers have been experimenting with EEG devices that both assess cognitive load, and adjust work levels based on that information. They have been tested on assembly line workers; for example, researchers in Belgium were able to distinguish between low, healthy, and dangerous amounts of cognitive load on workers in a simulated factory setting. Adjusting workloads could help keep workers safe and healthy. However, once again, there are concerns about employers using the bad days against them.
Applied Ergonomics Study on the potential of assessing cognitive workload
-
After years of development, some Chinese students now wear probes in the classroom that allows teachers immediate access to attention levels. While many are excited about the potential benefits of a more productive education, four major problems have been identified:
The data may often be inaccurate, as a classroom is far less controlled than a lab setting
It is often impossible to decipher between different brain states, as many produce similar looking data
Scientists do not know the ideal attention state for learning
The devices leave several other important brain changes completely unmonitored
The problems come from a combination of technology that is not quite there yet, and ethical problems for how to interpret and use the brain data.
The focus on increased focus and extreme efficiency in education reflects a desire to train productive future members of the workforce. In this case, neuroscience in business practice goes all the way back to childhood, reflecting its potential widespread effects.
Consider…
