More accurately, "Minimalism: happiness from reduced cognitive load, not just reduced possessions."
The author points out that it isn't the physical ramifications of less clutter (more room to move, etc.) that improved his quality of life, but that he felt he had more room to think without so much stuff around.
I agree. Clutter isn't just about whether you have to side-step more ottomans, coffee tables, and exercise bikes. It's also about whether you're being bombarded with sensory information from your surroundings.
Whether it's a crowded home, a crowded coffee shop, a crowded social circle, or a crowded desktop, the deluge of in-your-face options and potential obligations makes focus much more difficult. Frontal cortical processing is responsible, after all, not just for organizing but also for executive decision-making, and its resources are limited. See, e.g., K. Vohs et al., Making Choices Impairs Subsequent Self-Control: A Limited-Resource Account of Decision Making, Self-Regulation, and Active Initiative, 94 J. PERSONALITY AND SOC. PSYCHOL. 883 (2008); N. Meand et al., Too Tired to Tell the Truth: Self-Control Resource Depletion and Dishonesty, 45 J. EXPERIMENTAL SOC. PSYCHOL. 594 (2009); W. Hofmann et al., And Deplete Us Not into Temptation: Automatic Attitudes, Dietary Restraint, and Self-Regulatory Resources as Determinants of Eating Behavior, 43 J. EXPERIMENTAL SOC. PSYCHOL. 497 (2007)
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[ 0.70 ms ] story [ 13.6 ms ] threadThe author points out that it isn't the physical ramifications of less clutter (more room to move, etc.) that improved his quality of life, but that he felt he had more room to think without so much stuff around.
I agree. Clutter isn't just about whether you have to side-step more ottomans, coffee tables, and exercise bikes. It's also about whether you're being bombarded with sensory information from your surroundings.
Whether it's a crowded home, a crowded coffee shop, a crowded social circle, or a crowded desktop, the deluge of in-your-face options and potential obligations makes focus much more difficult. Frontal cortical processing is responsible, after all, not just for organizing but also for executive decision-making, and its resources are limited. See, e.g., K. Vohs et al., Making Choices Impairs Subsequent Self-Control: A Limited-Resource Account of Decision Making, Self-Regulation, and Active Initiative, 94 J. PERSONALITY AND SOC. PSYCHOL. 883 (2008); N. Meand et al., Too Tired to Tell the Truth: Self-Control Resource Depletion and Dishonesty, 45 J. EXPERIMENTAL SOC. PSYCHOL. 594 (2009); W. Hofmann et al., And Deplete Us Not into Temptation: Automatic Attitudes, Dietary Restraint, and Self-Regulatory Resources as Determinants of Eating Behavior, 43 J. EXPERIMENTAL SOC. PSYCHOL. 497 (2007)