Attention (Quiz 2)

Multiple Meanings of Attention

Alertness, awareness or arousal

Focused spotlight attention and search in the environment

Selective attention of specific information from the environment that is accepted into awareness and block out other information from awareness.

Multitasking of attention

orienting reflex or response in the enviornment

Attention has a LIMITED capacity

Focused (Selective) attention

the ability of attention to select certain inputs in the environment and ignore other inputs.

Divided attention

the ability of attention to process information from multiple inputs. Multitasking (talking on the cellphone while driving)

Shadowing Task

Different auditory messages are presented to each ear and a listener had to listen to one message and ignore the other

Dichotic Listening

Different auditory messages are presented to each ear and a listener is later asked to repeat back information from both sources

Donald Broadbent’s Filter theory of Attention

(1958): There is a cognitive filter that helps prevent the overload of the limited capacity short-term/working memory

Donald Broadbent’s Filter theory of Attention - 3 stages are

(1) Two inputs or messages are received in a sensory buffer that briefly stores information.

(2) One of the inputs is allowed through a cognitive filter on the basis of its physical characteristics.

(3) The selected input is sent to Short-term/Working memory for further processing.

Evaluation of the Filter theory

The filter theory was not flexible to account the variability of processing that occurs with unattended stimuli.

Underwood (1974) found that experts can identify more details in unattended message than non-experts.

Anne Treisman’s Attenuation Model of Attention (1964)

the processing of unattended information is attenuated (suppressed). This model allows for the flexibility of the cognitive filters.

Anne Treisman’s Attenuation Model of Attention - 4 stages

• Two inputs or messages are received in a sensory buffer that briefly stores information.

• Cognitive filter checks for physical properties of the "message" (loudness, pitch). Based on these properties, the information is either "weakened" or passed to the next cognitive filter (inhabition)

• Cognitive filter checks for physical properties of the "message" (loudness, pitch). Based on these properties, the information is either "weakened" or passed to the next cognitive filter (inhabition)

• Cognitive filter checks for meaning (relevant words). Based on the meaning, the information is either “weakened” or sent to short-term working memory (Inhibition)

• The selected input is sent to short-term/working memory for further processing

Foveal Vision

region of the retina with the highest number of cones that leads towards the sharpest vision for the visual spotlight of attention

Endogenous system

People’s intentional (conscious and aware) attention shifts.

Exogenous system

Environment controlling people’s automatic attention shifts.

Visual search

is a type of perceptual task requiring attention that typically involves an active scan of the visual environment for a particular object or feature (the target) among other objects or features (the distractors).

Feature Search

searching a target which differs from the distractors by a unique visual feature, such as color, size, orientation or shape. For example, find the letter B, O and Red X

Conjunction Search

process of searching for a target that is not defined by any single unique visual feature, but by a combination of two or more features. For example, find the Orange Square

Feature integration theory (Triesman and Gelade, 1980)

different stages of attention are responsible for binding different features into consciously experienced wholes or gestalts: 

Feature integration theory (Triesman and Gelade, 1980) 2 stages include:

Preattentive and Focused attention stage

Preattentive stage

several primary visual features are processed and represented with separate "feature maps“. During this stage, the object details such as shape, color, orientation and movement are analyzed separately from one another. Each of these aspects is processed in different areas of the brain.

Focused attention stage

This stage involves integrating individual features in order to perceive the whole object, or recognize it if enough information is presented. If the object is familiar, associations are made between the object and prior knowledge in order to aid in recognition (Top-Down Processing).

Hemineglect

patients with right parietal lobe damage ignore objects in the left visual field (When copying drawings and using visual imagery, there is a lack of attention to the left visual field.)

Divided Attention

Multitasking one thing while doing another.

Ex. writing lecture notes while listening to the professor

Task similarity

Tasks presented in the same modality or requires a similar response produces poor performance (ex. Texting and driving)

Components of Flow

The person feels that he or she has the energy to successfully complete the task (i.e. getting enough rest).

The person receives immediate and accurate feedback.

The person engages in deep effortless involvement in the task.

The person has a sense of control and accomplishment over their actions.

The lack of awareness about time.

The person is able to focus attention on the task

The person's goals are clear

Action Slips

A component of automatic processes involving performance of actions that were not intended.

What did Posner (1980) find?

Valid location cues produced faster and more accurate responses if targets appeared on the screen than neutral cues, In contrast, invalid cues caused slower responses, and less accurate than neutral cues

Fox, Russo, Bowles & Dutton (2001) did variations of the visual cuing task involved faces that were cued to a location, what was found ….

At short exposure (100 ms) there was general delay for disengaging from angry faces - unconscious processing

At long exposure (250 ms), only the high anxiety group had the general delay for disengaging from angry faces. - conscious processing

Georgious, Bleakley, Hayward, Russo, Dutton, Eltiti and Fox (2005) found that threat stimuli..

causes delayed disengagement but not to generally negative stimuli (like sad faces)

Visual attention as a zoom-lens (Eriksen & St. James, 1986): LaBerge (1983)

asked participants to categorize the letter in a given word (narrow attention focus) or categorize a word (wider attention focus). Reaction time was affected by the task demands.

Guided search Theory (Wolfe, 1994):

information from top-down and bottom-up processing of the stimulus are used to create a ranking of items in the order of their attentional priority. In a visual search, attention will be directed to the item with the highest priority. The guided search theory allows for parallel search processing. (Find the Orange Square)

Huntsinger, Clore & Bar-Anan (2010) investigate the impact of positive versus negative mood priming on global (gestalt) versus local (details) processing of visual information.

Researchers found that positive priming resulted in better global recognition of letters than local recognition of letters and negative priming resulted in better local recognition of letters than global recognition of letters.

• people in positive moods tend to base their similarity judgments on the global features of the stimuli more than people in negative mood

Practice: Spelke, Hirst and Neisser (1976)

trained participants to comprehend stories and copy words while listening to a tape recording. Massive practice made it possible to perform both tasks very well.

Central Capacity Theory of Attention (Daniel Kahneman, 1973)

• This assumes that attention is a specific capacity which has limited resources and controlled by the individual.

• The ability to perform two tasks depends on the amount placed on the resources by multiple tasks.

• As a behavior or skill becomes automatic, the task uses less of the limited attention resources allowing attention to perform other cognitive tasks. (multitasking).

Reason (1979) conducted a study where participants kept a diary of action slips. (3)

• Storage Failures

• Test Failures

• Discrimination Failures

Storage failures (40%)

intentions and actions are forgotten or incorrectly recalled. (Ex. take out the trash but failed to follow through due to the lack of attention (writing emails))

Test failures (20%)

the progress of a sequence of actions is not properly monitored (route home vs. route to grocery)

Discrimination failures: (11%)

errors in discrimination between objects (car keys vs. house keys) or actions (throwing the clothes into the trash can vs. throwing clothes into a laundry hamper

Posterior Attention Network (Parietal Lobe)

Focused attention

Anterior Attention Network (Frontal lobe):

Supervisory attentional system (Central executive of working memory)

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

• Symptoms include impulsivity, over-activity, and difficulty focusing attention leading to a disruption in social and academic performance.

• There are poor inhibitory processes, blocking distractions and focusing attention.

• 51% of ADHD co-occurs with depression, anxiety disorders, and conduct disorders.

• ADHD is caused by low levels of dopamine and norepinephrine in the right prefrontal cortex and the basal ganglia structures causing poor inhibitory processes, blocking distractions and focusing attention

• A treatment for ADHD is Ritalin that blocks the reuptake of dopamine and norepinephrine in the caudate nucleus.