Attending to the story is best for me since I care about learning and remembering. I can do something else while listening, but it has to be something that requires minimal attention, like moving myself around (I pause as needed, and when driving I am prepared to let myself ignore the audio and rewind later). Best is while walking, because I anchor events/facts in the story to my location.
I think it's mostly to do with whether you actually focus on the material.
At least for me, it's possible to read written material for pages and pages, producing the sounds in my head but not really listening to a single word said. Daydreaming while reading, perhaps. Happens most often when I'm falling asleep. I suspect that is pretty close to the state of listening to an audiobook while not paying attention.
That is pretty rare with reading a book and is self-limiting. Within a minute you realize you have no idea what you have read and backtrack. But it can go on for potentially hours at a time with an audiobook, and backtracking is rarely done.
Audiobooks still win out for me though; I can't go for a brisk walk while reading a book.
> That is pretty rare with reading a book and is self-limiting. Within a minute you realize you have no idea what you have read and backtrack. But it can go on for potentially hours at a time with an audiobook, and backtracking is rarely done.
Fwiw, I absolutely notice within a minute when I've stopped paying attention to an audiobook, and I use the skip backwards button to re-listen. No idea if that's common.
I do have more trouble with podcasts, possibly because I typically listen to podcasts in the background while doing other things, and I don’t do that with audiobooks.
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[ 12.8 ms ] story [ 20.6 ms ] threadYes, as good as reading on a screen. But maybe not as good as reading on paper (Easier to gauge where you are in a book on paper).
At least for me, it's possible to read written material for pages and pages, producing the sounds in my head but not really listening to a single word said. Daydreaming while reading, perhaps. Happens most often when I'm falling asleep. I suspect that is pretty close to the state of listening to an audiobook while not paying attention.
That is pretty rare with reading a book and is self-limiting. Within a minute you realize you have no idea what you have read and backtrack. But it can go on for potentially hours at a time with an audiobook, and backtracking is rarely done.
Audiobooks still win out for me though; I can't go for a brisk walk while reading a book.
Fwiw, I absolutely notice within a minute when I've stopped paying attention to an audiobook, and I use the skip backwards button to re-listen. No idea if that's common.
I do have more trouble with podcasts, possibly because I typically listen to podcasts in the background while doing other things, and I don’t do that with audiobooks.
Not so good at other times when videos or actual books can be more suitable because your ears are being used for other things.