attention 1

What is the definition of attention according to William James?

Attention is the taking into possession of the mind, in clear and vivid form, of one out of several simultaneously possible objects or trains of thought.

What is the problem addressed in the study of attention?

Too much incoming sensory information and the need to prioritize which information gets processed.

What is the sensory buffer?

Also known as sensory memory, it holds information coming from the senses before it decays.

How long does information typically last in the sensory buffer?

Information decays fast, typically within 300 milliseconds.

What is the difference between bottom-up and top-down attention?

Top-down attention is purposeful and involves actively focusing on specific information, while bottom-up attention is driven by external stimuli.

What is selective attention?

The ability to focus on a single stimulus while ignoring others.

What is divided attention?

The ability to focus on multiple stimuli or tasks at the same time, often referred to as multitasking.

What is the cocktail party problem?

The challenge of focusing on one conversation in a noisy environment while ignoring other conversations.

What method did Colin Cherry use to study selective auditory attention?

The dichotic listening task, where participants listen to different messages in each ear and are asked to repeat one.

What were the findings of Cherry's 1953 study on selective attention?

Participants recalled well from the shadowed ear but noticed only basic physical characteristics from the unattended ear.

What is the 'own-name effect'?

The phenomenon where one's name in an unattended stream of information captures attention.

What are early selection theories of attention?

Theories suggesting that a filter processes information early, leading to most information being lost.

Who proposed the filter theory of attention?

Donald Broadbent.

What was the method used in Broadbent's 1958 study?

Participants reported numbers either sequentially or by ear after hearing them presented in both ears.

What were the results of Broadbent's 1958 study?

Participants performed poorly when reporting numbers sequentially (20% correct) but better when reporting by ear (65% correct).

What does Broadbent's filter theory suggest about information processing?

Incoming sound information is initially processed in parallel and placed in a sensory buffer before selective attention occurs.

What is the attentional bottleneck?

The limited capacity of attention that necessitates a filtering mechanism to process information.

What is the difference between focused attention and divided attention?

Focused attention involves responding to one stimulus, while divided attention involves responding to multiple stimuli simultaneously.

What does the term 'shadowing' refer to in attention studies?

The process of repeating a message from one ear while ignoring the message from the other ear.

What did Moray (1959) contribute to the understanding of selective attention?

He reported the own-name effect, showing that names can capture attention even in unattended streams.

What is the significance of the cocktail party effect?

It illustrates how selective attention allows individuals to focus on specific conversations while filtering out background noise.

What is the role of psychological factors in attention according to Broadbent?

Psychological factors, especially attention, are crucial for understanding human cognition and information processing.

What is the difference between early selection and late selection theories?

Early selection theories suggest filtering occurs early in processing, while late selection theories suggest most information is retained and can be accessed later.

What is the role of attentional resources in information processing?

Attentional resources are limited, requiring a filter to manage which information is processed and which is ignored.

What is the impact of attention on perception?

What we perceive can depend significantly on what we attend to, highlighting the selectivity of perception.

How does attention serve perception?

Attention helps to select relevant information for perception while excluding irrelevant stimuli.

What does Broadbent's Filter Theory propose about information processing?

Information is selected based on physical characteristics and filtered before further processing.

What happens to unattended information in Broadbent's Filter Theory?

It is blocked by the filter and remains in the sensory buffer, decaying over time.

What does Broadbent's model assume about analysis before the bottleneck?

It assumes only the simplest forms of analysis occur prior to the filter.

What is the attentional cost associated with switching filters according to Broadbent?

Repeated switching of the filter incurs an attentional cost, making it difficult to process information.

What was the result of Broadbent's (1958) ear-by-ear recall experiment?

Participants performed better when recalling information from one ear than when switching ears.

What percentage of participants noticed their name in an unattended ear according to Moray (1959)?

33% noticed when the message included their name.

What did Treisman (1960) find about semantic processing in unattended channels?

Participants switched ears to follow a meaningful message, indicating some semantic processing occurred.

What is the 'Cocktail Party Effect'?

The phenomenon where people notice their name or other high-priority items in an unattended channel.

How does Treisman's Attenuation Theory differ from Broadbent's model?

Treisman's model suggests that unattended information is weakened but not entirely blocked.

What did Gray & Weddeburn (1960) demonstrate about attention?

Participants reported a meaningful phrase from both ears, suggesting attention follows semantic content.

What is the basic idea of Deutsch & Deutsch's Response Selection Theory?

People automatically scan for language-based information before filtering, allowing for extensive analysis.

What did Corteen & Wood (1972) find regarding conditioned words in unattended ears?

Participants showed physiological responses to conditioned words played in the unattended ear despite not consciously hearing them.

What was the outcome of Dawson & Schell's (1982) attempt to replicate Corteen & Wood's findings?

They found key unattended GSRs only when shadowing performance for the attended ear dropped.

What does the term 'leakage' refer to in the context of attention theories?

The phenomenon where some unattended information is processed despite being ignored.

What is the implication of the findings that some unattended information can be processed?

It suggests that early selection models are not entirely correct, as some semantic processing occurs.

What does Benoni & Tsal (2013) suggest about attentional selection?

The efficiency of attentional selection may depend on cognitive load and attentional capacity.

What is the significance of the 'early' vs. 'late' selection debate in attention?

It concerns when and how information is filtered during processing, with evidence supporting both perspectives.

What is the role of top-down processes in Treisman's Attenuation Theory?

Top-down processes help determine which unattended information can break through and be processed.

What did Underwood (1974) find regarding experienced vs. naïve shadowers?

Experienced shadowers detected significantly more digits in the unattended ear than naïve participants.

What does Treisman's model suggest about high-priority items?

High-priority items can cross the threshold for processing even when they are in the unattended channel.

What is the main criticism of Broadbent's Filter Theory?

It fails to account for instances where unattended information is processed semantically.

What is the key difference between Broadbent's and Treisman's models regarding filtering?

Broadbent's model uses an all-or-none filter, while Treisman's model allows for attenuation of unattended information.

What does the term 'semantic processing' refer to in attention theories?

The processing of information at a meaningful level, beyond just physical characteristics.

What does the replication crisis highlight about attention studies?

It raises concerns about the reliability of findings and the need for rigorous experimental controls.

What is the conclusion regarding the attentional filter based on current theories?

The attentional filter may operate at different stages, and its effectiveness can vary based on context and cognitive load.