Attention Flashcards
What is Attention
Attentional mechanisms filter and sustain focus on relevant information.
Nothing here
Attention Importance
We need to prioritize
information so
we do not waste
time and energy
on irrelevant
efforts.
Attention Challenge
How to balance the need for selective focus with the need to
handle new situations as they
arise.
How do we characterize attention?
Attention
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Source Target Type
Characterizing
attention:
Source Exogenous
Exogenous: in the environment, reflexive,
automatic, “bottom-up”
- A salient stimulus, e.g.:
a loud clap, a sharp pain, a bright flash, a
sudden movement
Characterizing
attention:
Endogenous
Endogenous: in the mind, voluntary, intentional, “top-down”
- A desire, goal, or instruction, e.g.:
- What are they talking about?
- Is this the correct exit from the highway?
- She told me to focus on the guy in the yellow
shirt
Characterizing attention Target( external)
sensory information, in the environment
* A sensory modality, spatial location, feature, or
object, e.g.:
* The sounds of the forest
* The back of the classroom
* The orange shirts of the opposing team
* The doughnut in the display case
Characterizing attention Target( Internal )
mental representations, in the mind
* A memory, imagery, or plan, e.g.:
* The license plate number of a hit and run driver
* You and your significant other relaxing on a
tropical island
* The next step in a recipe you are cooking
Characterizing attention: Type ( overt vs covert)
Overt: Involves actual movement of the sensory surface, e.g.: moving the eyes, directing the ear
- Covert: Does not involve actual movement, e.g.: “looking out the corner of your eye”,
“eavesdropping on a conversation at the next table”
Characterizing attention: Type( Transient vs sustained)
Transient: Momentary focus on something, e.g.: glancing at a stranger’s face
- Sustained: Prolonged focus on something, e.g.: standing watch at a door for 2 hours
Characterizing attention: Type ( selective vs divided)
Selective: Focus on one thing to the exclusion of others, e.g.: watching TV so intently, you don’t notice your friend enter the room
- Divided: Try to focus on multiple things simultaneously, e.g.: talking on the cellphone
while driving a car
The cocktail party effect :
that describes the ability of the human auditory system to focus on a single auditory source, like a conversation, in a noisy environment.
Dichotic listening
Different sounds in each ear; focus on one.
What do we know about the
unattended message?
Cherry (1953)
* Could report existence of
message
* Could report gender of
speaker
* Could NOT report content
Attention affects perception at different stages:( Early Filtering) (Modulation)
Early filtering: All-or-none selection (Broadbent’s model).
Modulation: Enhances relevant information.
Dichotic listening – cocktail party effect
Dichotic listening shows how attention filters one sound while ignoring others, like in the cocktail party effect.
Dear Aunt Jane effect
This shows that attention isn’t purely early filtering—meaning influences perception (Dear Aunt Jane effect).
Proposed change or (Treisman’s attenuation theory)
Proposed change: Attentional selection occurs after initial sensory input, allowing important information to be processed more strongly while weaker, unattended information is filtered out
McKay (1973)attended message.
found that meaning in the unattended message affects attention, as participants could report it when it was related to the attended message.
nothing here
Early vs. late selection( Flexible)
This describes how attention is flexible and can be controlled at different levels. Early vs. late selection depends on the situation, and top-down modulation means attention is guided by our goals or intentions.
What can we learn from the neural effects of attention?( psychological hierarchy)(SCMDB)
Sensory Processing – Enhances perception.
Cognitive Control – Regulates focus and suppression.
Memory & Learning – Strengthens encoding and retrieval.
Decision-Making – Guides choices via prioritization.
Behavior & Performance – Optimizes task execution.
Brain Areas Involved in Attention”(BSPPFL)
Brainstem & Thalamus – Filter sensory input before cortex.
Sensory Cortex – Enhances perception (visual, auditory, somatosensory).
Parietal Cortex – Directs focus, suppresses distractions.
Prefrontal Cortex – Regulates attention, task-switching.
Frontoparietal Network – Controls voluntary attention shifts.
Limbic System – Modulates attention based on emotion/memory.
Electroencephalography (EEG)
A non-invasive method to measure brain activity.
Detects electrical signals from neurons’ dendrites.
Captures fast changes in brain activity (over 1000 times per second).
Uses up to 256 electrodes but has low detail on where signals come from.
ERPs (Event-Related Potentials)
– Averaged EEG signals reflecting brain responses to stimuli.
Time-locked to event of
interest
- Typically plotted with
negative up!
ERP Waveform Components(P1N1P2N2P3N4Lpp)
P1 – Early sensory processing
N1 – Attention and perception
P2 – Cognitive evaluation
N2 – Conflict detection
P3 (P300) – Decision-making
N400 – Semantic processing
LPP – Emotional processing
Brainstem evoked responses
line in the middle in going down
Militancy responses
wave is up Na and Pa down then goes up again
Late latency response from secondary and tertiary
auditory cortex
NI is very high up and then very down and up
Auditory Oddball Task
Random sequence of auditory “pips”
Deviant targets (different volume or pitch)
Instructed to attend to one ear
Attentional Stream Paradigm
Random sequence of auditory “pips”
Deviant targets (different volume or pitch)
Instructed to attend to one ear
Attentional Effects on Auditory Processing
Differences between attended and unattended ear in 20-50 ms range (mid-latency response)
Attention affects primary auditory cortex processing
Late Latency Attention Effects( S and T
Difference in attended vs. unattended around 100 ms (late latency)
Attention affects secondary and tertiary auditory cortex processing
Oddball ERPs & MMN
Oddball paradigm: Rare “deviant” among frequent “standard.”
MMN: Detects mismatches even without attention.
Effects of attention in primary,
secondary and tertiary auditory
cortex.
Late waves (good)
Midlatency responses( good)
