Attention & Focus under Digital Load 2026 (Dataset)
A de-identified open dataset (n=353) examining how digitally active adults experience sustained attention, cognitive load, interruption recovery, and disengagement behaviour when engaging with digital and AI-mediated information environments.
Measures include validated 1–7 Likert-scale instruments assessing attention stability, frequency of digital interruption, recovery difficulty after disruption, mental saturation, effort escalation, and behavioural persistence despite cognitive strain, alongside standard demographic variables.
Part of the Human Clarity Institute’s Human–AI Experience Data Series.
Framework
HRL domain(s): Agency & Decision Autonomy, Trust & Epistemic Stability, Attention & Cognitive Load
Registry Construct Alignment: Decision dependence, Trust calibration, Attention capacity
Listed constructs reflect longitudinal, registry-mapped item alignment and do not represent the full thematic scope of this dataset.
DOI and Repository Links
This dataset is archived in GitHub, Zenodo, and Figshare for long-term preservation.
Citation
APA
Human Clarity Institute. (2026).
Attention & Focus under Digital Load 2026 (Dataset).
Human Clarity Institute.
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18617930
BibTeX
@dataset{hci_attention_focus_digital_load_2026,
author = {Human Clarity Institute},
title = {Attention & Focus under Digital Load 2026 (Dataset)},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.5281/zenodo.18617930},
url = {https://humanclarityinstitute.com/datasets/attention-focus-digital-load-2026/},
license = {CC-BY-4.0}
}
Licence
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
You are free to share, adapt, and build upon this dataset for any purpose, including commercial use,
provided appropriate credit is given to the Human Clarity Institute.
Full licence text: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Study Methodology
This dataset forms part of the Human Clarity Institute’s Human–AI Experience research programme, examining how digital environments shape attention, mental saturation, and cognitive effort under conditions of information overload. The study uses a cross-sectional online survey design and focuses on descriptive patterns in how people experience attention in digitally saturated environments.
Data were collected on 10 February 2026 via the Prolific research platform from adults across English-speaking countries. Participants provided explicit informed consent for anonymised data publication as part of HCI’s open research programme.
Sampling & participants
- Clean dataset: 353 valid responses
- Countries: Australia, United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand
- Eligibility: Adults (18+)
- Recruitment platform: Prolific
- Anonymisation: Participant IDs, timestamps, and direct identifiers removed prior to release
Study limitations
- The survey uses a non-probability convenience sample and is not nationally representative.
- Results are based on self-reported responses and reflect perceived experiences.
- The study uses a cross-sectional design, capturing responses at a single point in time.
- The dataset is descriptive and exploratory and does not support causal inference.