Developing good study habits will ensure success in academics. Study methods vary from student to student, therefore it becomes difficult to find compatible learning groups. Reviewing material alone allows students to work at a time and place of their choosing, eliminating the obstacles of managing multiple schedules and venues.
According to an article from the Eberly Center of Carnegie Mellon University, “Coordination costs represent time and energy that group work consumes that individual work does not, including the time it takes to coordinate schedules, arrange meetings, meet, correspond, make decisions collectively, integrate the contributions of group members, etc. The time spent on each of these tasks may not be great, but together they are significant.”
Harvard Health described in an article that “Americans check their mobile phones an average of 80 times a day; the highest users surveyed topped 300 daily checks. But each time we interrupt something we were doing to check our phones, we break our concentration and have to start over.”
Adding additional members can introduce potential distractions. Many people have cell phones that require constant attention. Incessant phone chimes, ringtones and buzzing are a sure way to derail any train of thought. Studying alone affords one the ability to stow away any possible disruptions and makes it easier to focus on the task at hand.
It is beneficial to receive others’ perspectives which differ from yours and help see things in a new light, but having too many different ideas can cloud an issue and take up valuable time without any significant accomplishment. Such conversations invariably lead in unnecessary directions.
Composing a study group of compatible personalities is very difficult and also time-consuming. Trying to manage different personalities can become challenging and overwhelming.
The Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization states, “Being connected to others in a group also comes with the risk of being exploited, though, because actions in the interest of the in-group often involve costs for the individual group member.”
Students should adopt the best strategies for their individual needs. Since people can be distracting, and in-fighting can take away from someone’s personal needs, solo-studying is ideal.