A multiple, virtual-workspace interface to support user task switching
CHI '87 Proceedings of the SIGCHI/GI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems and Graphics Interface
The temporal structure of cooperative activity
CSCW '90 Proceedings of the 1990 ACM conference on Computer-supported cooperative work
Timespace in the workplace: dealing with interruptions
CHI '95 Conference Companion on Human Factors in Computing Systems
The Task Gallery: a 3D window manager
Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Effects of instant messaging interruptions on computing tasks
CHI '00 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Evaluation and analysis of users' activity organization
CHI '83 Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
"Constant, constant, multi-tasking craziness": managing multiple working spheres
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
A diary study of task switching and interruptions
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
If not now, when?: the effects of interruption at different moments within task execution
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
TaskTracer: a desktop environment to support multi-tasking knowledge workers
Proceedings of the 10th international conference on Intelligent user interfaces
No task left behind?: examining the nature of fragmented work
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Support for activity-based computing in a personal computing operating system
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Disruption and recovery of computing tasks: field study, analysis, and directions
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
CAAD: an automatic task support system
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Human-Computer Interaction
Multitasking and monotasking: the effects of mental workload on deferred task interruptions
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Mobile taskflow in context: a screenshot study of smartphone usage
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
The CLOTHO project: predicting application utility
Proceedings of the 8th ACM Conference on Designing Interactive Systems
Why do i keep interrupting myself?: environment, habit and self-interruption
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Active progress bars: facilitating the switch to temporary activities
CHI '11 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems
End-user debugging strategies: A sensemaking perspective
ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI)
CHI '12 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems
The effects of positive and negative self-interruptions in discretionary multitasking
CHI '12 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Back to the app: the costs of mobile application interruptions
MobileHCI '12 Proceedings of the 14th international conference on Human-computer interaction with mobile devices and services
Interleaving tasks to improve performance: Users maximise the marginal rate of return
International Journal of Human-Computer Studies
Self-interruptions in discretionary multitasking
Computers in Human Behavior
Activity-centric support for ad hoc knowledge work: a case study of co-activity manager
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Exploring factors influencing multitasking interaction with multiple smart devices
Computers in Human Behavior
Capturing the mood: facebook and face-to-face encounters in the workplace
Proceedings of the 17th ACM conference on Computer supported cooperative work & social computing
Supporting task resumption using visual feedback
Proceedings of the 17th ACM conference on Computer supported cooperative work & social computing
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The typical information worker is interrupted every 12 minutes, and half of the time they are interrupting themselves. However, most of the research on interruption in the area of human-computer interaction has focused on understanding and managing interruptions from external sources. Internal interruptions -- user-initiated switches away from a task prior to its completion -- are not well understood. In this paper we describe a qualitative study of self-interruption on the computer. Using a grounded theory approach, we identify seven categories of self-interruptions in computer-related activities. These categories are derived from direct observations of users, and describe the motivation, potential consequences, and benefits associated with each type of self-interruption observed. Our research extends the understanding of the self-interruption phenomenon, and informs the design of systems to support discretionary task interleaving on the computer.