Definitionv1
Batching: the cognitive strategy of grouping similar tasks
Batching: the cognitive strategy of grouping similar tasks together into uninterrupted blocks to minimize the number of task-set reconfigurations that the prefrontal cortex must perform, thereby reducing executive function depletion and attention residue accumulation
Why This Is a Definition
This definition establishes batching as a specific cognitive strategy with clear operational characteristics. It identifies the genus (cognitive strategy) and differentia (grouping similar tasks, uninterrupted blocks, minimizing task-set reconfigurations). It explains the causal mechanism (reducing executive function depletion and attention residue) rather than just describing the practice, making it a precise definition.