The study
A new study from Binghamton University, published in the journal Memory & Cognition, suggests that taking screenshots and photos might actually make you more likely to forget, a phenomenon researchers call the 'photo-taking impairment effect.' The research, carried out by psychologist Sophia Fabrizio and colleagues, involved 892 participants across seven experiments and found that taking screenshots consistently impaired memory.
'We are likely harming our memory for information and experiences with the press of a button, and this impairment may even extend beyond what is captured,' Fabrizio said.
The experiments
In the first experiment, participants were shown 44 images of art, ranging from photographs to paintings and sketches, and instructed to screenshot some of them. After a 10-minute distraction task, they were asked to choose the original image out of three similar variations. The researchers deliberately selected images that were very close to the originals, making the task difficult.
Participants performed worse on the screenshotted images compared to those they had only viewed. A second experiment added a question asking participants whether they recalled viewing or screenshotting each image; results showed they were also less likely to remember having taken a screenshot at all. Subsequent experiments involving math problems or memory tasks showed few signs of benefit from screenshotting, and even when participants were told they would be tested in 30 minutes versus a month (with both groups actually tested after 10 minutes), little difference emerged.
The authors concluded: 'In sum, the present study suggests a pronounced memory impairment associated with screenshotting, with only modest benefits to subsequent learning observed under very circumscribed conditions and measures of memory performance.'
Why does this happen?
Scientists have proposed several explanations for the photo-taking impairment effect. One suggests that using a camera or phone divides attention or disengages you from what's happening around you, so your brain devotes fewer resources to encoding the memory. Another points to attentional disengagement.
The leading hypothesis, however, is cognitive offloading: your brain may dedicate less effort to remembering something if it knows that memory is already stored in the form of a photograph. Whether this is a conscious or unconscious decision doesn't seem to matter. This is similar to the so-called 'Google effect' – why bother storing information in your brain when you can look it up online, such as not memorizing phone numbers.
The effect has shown up in research for decades, but this study adds to the evidence with its multiple experiments.
Context and caveats
The findings run counter to the common assumption that taking photos helps preserve memories. Indeed, the researchers note that other studies have suggested taking photos can aid memory under certain conditions. Previous research, for instance, showed that people with memory loss who reviewed photos of their day were better able to recall details later. As Fabrizio put it, 'Unless you are actively reviewing those images as cues … it is unlikely to benefit you.'
The problem, the authors suggest, arises when we take a snapshot or screenshot and never look at it again. Given that about 90% of Americans use a smartphone, taking about 20 photos a day and keeping about 2,000 photos on their devices, the habit is widespread.
'Instead of the image being banished to the digital void,' researchers recommend writing things down rather than screenshotting when you want to remember something.