KIN 372 Limited Capacity Attention

What is attention?

• Consciousness/awareness

• Effortful information processing

• Influences ability to do more than one thing at a time

• Limited

What is controlled processing?

Attention – effortful

• Flexible, intentional

• Consciously aware

• Constrained by the amount of attentional resources

What is automatic processing?

Occurs without attention

Does NOT draw upon general processing resources

Skilled performance (typing)

Late stages of learning

How does one move from controlled to automatic processing?

With learning/practice

What is multitasking?

One task is less attention-demanding (more automatic) than another, so we can do both simultaneously

Multitasking is influenced by:

The degree of automaticity

The similarity between the tasks

The complexity of the task

One’s level of arousal

How can limited attention capacity contribute to a car accident?

The degree of automaticity (same or different car)

The similarity between tasks (texting and driving)

The complexity of the tasks (simple or complex)

One’s level of arousal (sleepy)

Filter Theory

Difficulty doing more than one thing at a time because the human information-processing system performs each of its functions in serial order

What’s the problem with the Filter Theory?

The brain DOES NOT do serial process information - rather, processing occurs simultaneously.

What does cognitive effort depend upon in the Central Resource Theory?

Available capacity – flexible

• Task demands

• Individual

• Situation

Arousal

Inverted U principle

When arousal is very high or very low:

• Less attentional capacity available

• Perceptual narrowing occurs, cue utilization changes

What effects the inverted U principle?

Fine vs gross movement (fine motor = more arousal)

Complexity of task (more complex = more arousal)

Number of decisions (more decisions = more arousal)

What are the four general rules for allocation?

Ensure completion

Enduring dispositions

Novel

Momentary intentions

What does cognitive effort depend upon in the Multiple Resource Theory?

Input/output modalities

• Hands, speech, vision

Stages of information processing

• Perception

• Memory encoding

• Response outcome

Codes of processing information

• Verbal codes, spatial codes

Singing and Driving (Multiple Resource Theory)

Input and output modalities are different

Use two different pools

Driving: Input and output modalities

vision – high perception – short-term memory – hands: SPATIAL CODE

Singing: Input and output modalites

hearing – low perception – long-term memory – speech: VERBAL CODE

Texting and Driving (Multiple Resource Theory)

Texting: vision – high perception – short-term memory – hands

• Perception, memory, and response are the same.

Use the same pool

What is attentional focus?

Directing attention to specific characteristics in a performance environment or an action-preparation activity.

Example of narrow and external focus

catching a ball

Example of broad and internal focus

Walking through a cluttered environment

What is attention switching?

Changing between attentional focus

• Cannot make an eye movement without changing attention

Action Effect Hypothesis

Focus on the outcome