One of the more problematic features of mind-wandering is that it tends to impair the ability of attention to monitor the external environment in great detail. This is because when the mind wanders attention becomes decoupled from the task in hand. This process of decoupling explains whey the experience of internalize thought is associated with error on tasks measuring sustained attention.
Articles:
Subjective experience and the attentional lapse
The Efffects of Block Duration and Task Demands on the Experience of TUT
The footprints of a wandering mind – Further examination of the time course of an attentioanl lapse
Alcohol and the wandering mind – A new direction in the study of alcohol on attentional lapses
