Attention

Question 1

What is the state of attention?

Answer 1

The difference between attended and unattended processing

Question 2

What is the process of attention?

Answer 2

The selection of relevant information

Question 3

What are the 2 divisions of attention?

Answer 3

Focused attention and divided attention

Question 4

What does focused attention do?

Answer 4

Processes only one input.

Question 5

What does divided attention do?

Answer 5

Processes all inputs

Question 6

What is focused attention sub-divided to?

Answer 6

Auditory and visual

Question 7

What is divided attention sub-divided into?

Answer 7

Task similarity, task difficulty and practice

Question 8

What is selective attention?

Answer 8

The process by which relevant information is selected for further processing and irrelevant information is discarded

Question 9

How is selective attention often investigated?

Answer 9

By measuring the influence of ignored information on performance
If the irrelevant information affects performance, then it implies that the irrelevant information was not fully ignored

Question 10

What are the theories of selective attention?

Answer 10

1. Broadbent’s filter theory
2. Trelsman’s attenuation theory
3. Deutsch and Deutsch theory

Question 11

What is Broadbent’s filter theory?

Answer 11

2 inputs go through sensory register
only 1 input goes past the selective filter into STM

Question 12

What is Trelsman’s attenuation theory

Answer 12

2 inputs go through sensory register
2 inputs go through attenuator
they both go to STM but
since STM has limited capacity, only 1 input comes out

Question 13

What is Deutsch theory

Answer 13

2 inputs go through sensory register
They both go to STM
only one comes out of STM

Question 14

What are the neural mechanisms of attention?

Answer 14

1. Single-cell studies
2. ERP studies
3. Neuroimaging studies

Question 15

What are failures of attention without brain damage?

Answer 15

1. Inattentional blindness
2. Change blindness
3. Attentional blink

Question 16

What is inattentional blindess?

Answer 16

The phenomenon that an unexpected stimulus often goes unnoticed, because it did not receive attention

Question 17

What are disorders of visual attention?

Answer 17

Visual neglect - a lack of awareness of stimuli presented to the side of space on the opposite side of the brain damage

Extinction - neglect patients sometimes detect a single stimulus presented to the left visual field but fail to detect the same stimulus when another stimulus is presented to the right of it

Question 18

Tell me about visual neglect

Answer 18

Following lesions to right parietal lobe (stroke) patients often neglect left hemisphere

Question 19

Tell me about extinction

Answer 19

2 objects presented simultaneously to each visual field, patient won’t see objects in visual field corresponding to damage

Question 20

What areas are involved in attention?

Answer 20

Neuroimaging techniques show that the parietal and frontal lobes are involved in attention