The current study investigated media multitasking habits and media multitasking beliefs, and explored the relationship of multitasking habits and nationality, specifically with Malaysian and American college students, and its effects on academic performance. It also investigated the relationship between multitasking beliefs, multitasking habits while studying and academic performance. Media multitasking has detrimental effects to academics, increases errors, and hinders creativity, good decisions, and concentration (Elder, 2013). According to Bowman, Waite, and Levine, Asia Pacific countries, such as Malaysia, tend to use media and technology more than North American and European countries (2014). Polychronicity, which is the preferences of engaging in two or more tasks at one time, promoted multitasking in a fast-paced society such as Malaysia and the United States of America (U.S.A.) and influenced multitasking in the academic realm, especially college students (Kononova and Chiang, 2015). Poor learning often leads to poorer academic performance and a lower …show more content…
The results of the current study suggest that GPA does not reliably predict multitasking habits. The relationship between multitasking hours with nationality showed it was significant, t(269) = -2.13, p = 0.34, d = 0.26, 95% CI = [-8.07, -.032]. Nationality can predict some multitasking, which includes the use of Facebook and text messaging. Multitasking beliefs have a significant relationship with GPA, F(2, 267) = 4.17, p = .017, η2 = 0.030. A significant relationship is observed with multitasking hours and multitasking beliefs, F(2, 267) = 6.2792, p =.002 η2 = 0.045; high-level multitasker believers (M = 24.93) had lower GPAs. However, there was no significant difference in the levels of multitasking beliefs among Malaysian and American college