Attention and Consciousness Study Notes

Chapter 4: Attention and Consciousness

Overview of Attention

  • Attention: The active process of focusing on specific information from our environment.
  • Involves engagement in perceptual, cognitive, and motor activities.

Main Functions of Attention

  1. Signal Detection and Vigilance
  2. Search
  3. Selective Attention
  4. Divided Attention

Signal Detection Theory (SDT)

  • Defines the ability to detect stimuli as dependent on:
    1. The intensity of the stimulus (e.g. volume of sound).
    2. The individual's physical and psychological state (e.g., alertness).
  • Example: Walking in an empty parking lot at night increases sensitivity to noise due to perceived threats.

Vigilance in SDT

  • Vigilance: The ongoing attention to stimuli to detect specific targets over time.
  • Notable decline over time, leading to increased misses and false alarms.

Searching for Targets

  • Actively searching involves a consideration of:
    • Number of targets and distractors affecting accuracy.
    • Feature Search vs. Conjunctive Search:
    • Feature Search: Environment scanned for a single feature.
    • Conjunctive Search: Combination of features is scanned sequentially.

Feature-Integration Theory (FIT)

  • Explains how individuals combine observable information to form a complete perception.
  • Feature Processing: Conducted in parallel (simultaneous processing).
  • Conjunctive Searching: Requires sequential attention to integrate features.
  • Example: Finding a red T (feature search) vs. finding a red T within a T and X context (conjunctive search).

Similarity Theory & Guided Search

  • Similarity Theory: The difficulty of detecting a target increases with greater similarity to distractors.
  • Guided Search Theory: Combines two phases:
    1. Parallel Phase: Processing of multiple basic features simultaneously.
    2. Serial Phase: Focused search on specific features in a smaller area.

Selectivity of Attention

  • Example: Cocktail Party Effect - ability to focus on one conversation amidst background noise.
  • Shadowing: Technique where a participant must repeat one message while ignoring another.

Theories of Selective Attention

  • Broadbent’s Model: Suggests early filtering of sensory input at the sensory level based on characteristics like loudness.
  • Late Selection Theory (Deutsch & Deutsch): Information is filtered after analysis of both physical properties and meaning.
  • Treisman’s Attenuation Model: Unattended stimuli are weakened but not completely filtered out, allowing for detection under strong conditions.

Divided Attention

  • Difficulty and factors influencing attention include:
    • Anxiety
    • Arousal
    • Task difficulty
    • Skills
  • Real-life examples involve multitasking (e.g., driving while on a phone).

When Attention Fails

  1. ADHD: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder characterized by difficulties in maintaining focus and impulsive behaviors.
  2. Inattentional Blindness: Failure to notice an unexpected item when distracted by another.
  3. Change Blindness: Inability to detect substantial visual changes.
  4. Spatial Neglect: Ignoring one side of the visual field due to brain lesions.

Habituation & Dishabituation

  • Habituation: Decrease in response to repeated stimuli.
  • Dishabituation: Response re-emergence when a change occurs.
  • Applications in testing abilities of infants and animals.

Attention and Consciousness

  • Attention: Facilitates the processing of limited information from a vast pool of stimuli.
  • Consciousness: Pertains to awareness and its content, which may include elements outside focus of attention.

Preconscious Processing

  • Information available for processing but not currently in conscious awareness.
  • Related concepts: Priming, Tip-of-the-Tongue (TOT) Phenomenon, Blindsight.

Priming

  • Priming: Facilitates the processing of stimuli based on prior exposure to similar stimuli.
  • When primed with related words, target processing speeds up (e.g., "BREAD" speeds processing of "BUTTER").

Examples of Priming Through Experiments

  • Anthony Marcel's Study (1983):
    • Showed that subliminally and consciously presented primes influence reaction times differently based on meanings activated.

Negative Priming Effect

  • Negative Priming: The processing of a target can be slowed if preceded by a word related to an alternate meaning. For example, processing "PINE" may slow if the word "PALM" precedes it, due to activation of an alternate meaning.

Tip-of-the-Tongue Experiences (TOT)

  • Tot Phenomenon: Inability to retrieve information known to be stored in memory, but feeling it is on the verge of recall (e.g. being able to state the number of syllables but not the word itself).

Blindsight

  • Blindsight: Awareness deficit in specific visual fields where individuals cannot consciously see, but can still respond to visual stimuli accurately.
  • Often associated with cortical blindness due to lesions in the primary visual cortex (V1).