1 . In the days before the Internet, critical thinking is the most important skill that we could have. To think critically, we need to read carefully, consider the credibility (可信度) of sources, and reason out conclusions on our own. But in the digital age, according to Anastasia Kozyreva, a psychologist at the Max Planck Institute of Human Development, a more important skill is “critical ignoring”.

“With so much information, we need to first sort the wheat from the chaff, deciding what’s worth our attention and time, and what’s not. Now, we live in an ‘attention economy’ in which we are no longer consumers. Rather, we’re the products whose attention is being sold on the advertising marketplace. That means each link we click on is a sale of our time and attention, often with little or no benefit to ourselves. To protect ourselves, we need to develop new ways of interacting with information,” she said.

Kozyreva advocates learning the skill of critical ignoring, in which readers intentionally control their information environment to reduce their exposure to false and trash information.

By developing our critical ignoring skills, she thinks we can enjoy the benefits of the Internet while avoiding falling victim to those who try to control our attention, our time, and our minds. Here are three of the strategies recommended by her to avoid the traps of attention economy.

The first strategy is self-control. Of course, we need to stay informed of world events and be in touch with others, so we can’t just ignore the Internet altogether. When we do go into social media, Kozyreva recommends setting time limits. Limiting ourselves in this way prevents us from losing track of time as we click on one attractive link after another.

The next strategy is in-depth reading. For example, headlines are often designed to attract attention, not provide information. The contents of the articles may be completely contrary to what the headlines show.