Att&Per Unit 1 Flashcards
- Principle: Definition of Attention
Definition: Attention involves the allocation of cognitive resources to process a limited amount of information.
Source: Styles, 2006; Sternberg & Sternberg, 2012
Principle: Types of Attention
Types:
Selective (focused) attention
Divided attention (multi-tasking)
Sustained attention (vigilance)
Experiment: Posner Task
Description: Subjects fixate on a central cue and press a button when a target ‘X’ appears. The task demonstrates that attended stimuli are processed faster than unattended stimuli.
Principle: Functions of Attention
Functions:
Selects important information for preferential processing.
Optimizes information processing.
Facilitates memory processes.
Prevents excessive information overload.
Principle: Top-down Processing
Description: Active attention controlled by subject’s goals and expectations. For example, actively paying attention to traffic lights.
Principle: Bottom-up Processing
Description: Passive attention controlled by external stimuli. For example, being captured by a horn sound while waiting at traffic lights.
Principle: Consciousness and Attention
Consciousness and EEG
Description: Attention and consciousness are not the same. Consciousness implies a feeling of awareness, and attention can focus on different aspects of conscious experience.
Experiment: EEG Perturbations
Consciousness and EEG
Description: Playing a meaningful audio message while someone is asleep produces perturbations in the EEG signal.
Philosopher: William James
Quote: “Everyone knows what attention is. It is the taking possession of the mind in clear and vivid form…”
Concept: Diverse Cognitive Processes in Attention
Description: Attention is not a singular concept, but an umbrella term for a variety of psychological phenomena and processes.
Concept: Adaptive Function of Attention
Description: Attention is an adaptive function that prevents us from being overwhelmed by processing every detail in the environment.
Concept: Linking Memories with Present
Description: Attention helps in activating long-term memories and bringing them to consciousness, linking them with the present.
Concept: Planning Future Actions
Description: Attention assists in planning future actions by monitoring the current situation and activating relevant memories.
Experiment: Simultaneous Ear Presentation
Description: Presenting information simultaneously in both ears, even when attention is focused on one, can result in memory of the information in the unattended ear.
Concept: Feeling of Awareness in Consciousness
Description: Consciousness implies a feeling of awareness, even when attention may be focused elsewhere within conscious experience.
