How Optimal Is the “Optimal Experience”? Toward a More Nuanced Understanding of the Relationship Between Flow States, Attentional Performance, and Perceived Effort

Flow is defined as the “optimal experience” of complete engagement with a task. It is thought of as a distinctive state of mind that is characterized by heightened attentional focus and perceived effortlessness and comes with performance improvements. Putting to test this common understanding of flow, this study examines flow states during the execution of a standardized attention test. Specifically, we tested whether flow predicts attention test performance and analyzed how flow relates to perceived workload during the test. A total of N = 110 participants completed the d2 sustained attention test and then filled out the Flow State Scale as well as the NASA Task Load Index. Regression analyses revealed flow to be a positive predictor for test performance as well as for perceived workload in terms of self-rated performance, while being a negative predictor for perceived workload in terms of frustration. Exploratory analyses suggest that the predictive relation between flow and performance was driven by a tendency to increase speed but not accuracy during flow. Thus, a more fluent allocation of attention seems to account for a small optimization of task execution during flow. Moreover, rather than with perceived effortlessness per se, flow seems to come with a positive evaluation of one’s efforts in relation to the task’s challenge level. These findings suggest a more nuanced take on flow as a state in which basic attentional processes are executed more fluently and effort is perceived more positively than normally during task engagement.