Stress of modern life ‘cuts attention spans to five minutes’

And, what’s more shocking is that the lack of ability to focus is resulting in a surge of mishaps at home, the study has found.

Lead researcher David Moxon, a sociologist, said: “More than ever, research is highlighting a trend in reduced attention and concentration spans, and our experiment suggests that the younger generation appear to be the worst afflicted.

“(In fact), lack of attention has a serious impact on task performance and increases the risk of accidents.”

The researchers who carried out the study commissioned by Lloyds TSB insurance, have based their findings on a survey of 1,000 people in Britain, the British media reported.

According to the survey, the average ability of the respondents to carry out simple tasks and recall daily events had worsened compared to a decade ago – 18 per cent blamed stress for their inability to concentrate while 17 per cent said they were too busy trying to make decisions.

It found that the over 50s had a much better attention span than younger groups suggesting that impaired attention is due to our hectic lifestyle rather than being age-related.

And, declining attention spans are causing household accidents like pans being left to boil over on the hob, baths allowed to overflow, freezer doors left open, and laptops left on switched-off mode on bed, the researchers found.

Interestingly, a quarter of people polled said they regularly forgot the names of close friends or relatives, and seven per cent even admitted to momentarily forgetting their own birthdays.