Navigating Uncertainty: The Interplay of Exploration Behavior, Media Multitasking, and Mind Wandering

Abstract In an era dominated by digital media, individuals increasingly engage in media multitasking (MMT)—the simultaneous use of multiple media sources—which may profoundly shape attention, cognitive control, and decision-making strategies. Parallel to this external cognitive behavior, mind-wandering represents an internal attentional drift, characterized by spontaneous thoughts decoupled from ongoing tasks. Both phenomena are hypothesized to be rooted in a broader drive for exploration, seeking novelty and information under uncertainty. This thesis investigates the cognitive and behavioral interplay between media multitasking, mind-wandering, and exploration behavior within a structured experimental framework. Drawing on theoretical foundations (e.g., RL, information foraging theory), the study conceptualizes MMT as external exploration, mind-wandering as internal exploration, and exploration behavior as the observable decision-making trade-off between novelty and exploitation. To empirically test this framework, 510 participants completed a digital grid-based decision-making task (Truffle Task) measuring directed and random exploration, alongside self-reported MMT indices and behavioral proxies of mind-wandering derived from reaction time(RT) variability. Findings reveal that higher media MMT correlates with increased exploratory behavior, particularly in terms of novel choices, supporting the hypothesis that habitual media switching reflects an elevated exploratory tendency. Mind-wandering emerged as a significant mediator: individuals with greater RT variability—indicative of attentional lapses—exhibited both fewer goal-directed (high-value) choices and more novel, unstructured selections. Importantly, mind-wandering was also independently associated with a higher overall engagement in exploration, suggesting a dual role as both a cognitive disruptor and a facilitator of novelty-seeking. These results underscore a complex, bidirectional relationship: while MMT and mind-wandering may undermine task performance by fragmenting attention, they also align with adaptive exploratory mechanisms. The study contributes to a growing literature reconceptualizing cognitive distraction not solely as dysfunction, but as a context-sensitive expression of the brain’s intrinsic search for stimulation and information. Implications span from media use and education to the neurocognitive understanding of curiosity and attentional flexibility.