Attention Flashcards
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Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
a disorder marked by an ongoing pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development.
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Attentional capture
the phenomenon in which attention is involuntarily directed towards a target stimulus based on the characteristics of that stimulus
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Attenuation model of attention
a model of selective attention proposed by Anne Treisman, proposed as a means to explain how unattended stimuli sometimes came to be processed in a more rigorous manner than what Broadbent’s filter model could account for. Claims that instead of a filter which barred unattended inputs from ever entering awareness, it was a process of attenuation
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Attenuator
a device consisting of an arrangement of resistors which reduces the strength of a radio or audio signal.
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Automatic processing
capable of occurring without the need for attention, and the awareness of the initiation or operation of the process, and without drawing upon general processing resources or interfering with other concurrent thought processes
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Balint’s syndrome
a rare manifestation of visual and spatial difficulties due to the parietal lobe lesions
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Binding problem
the problem of how brains segregate elements in complex patterns of sensory input so that they are allocated to discrete “objects”
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Bottleneck model
any model of attention that assumes the existence of a limited-capacity channel (typically with a capacity of one item) at some specific stage of human information processing. In late-selection theories, this channel occurs after stimulus identification
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Change blindness
a perceptual phenomenon that occurs when a change in a visual stimulus is introduced and the observer does not notice it
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Cocktail party effect
the phenomenon of the brain’s ability to focus one’s auditory attention (an effect of selective attention in the brain) on a particular stimulus while filtering out a range of other stimuli, as when a partygoer can focus on a single conversation in a noisy room
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Conjunction search
a visual search process that focuses on identifying a previously requested target surrounded by distractors possessing one or more common visual features with the target itself
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Covert attention
paying attention without moving the eyes
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Dichotic listening
a psychological test commonly used to investigate selective attention and the lateralization of brain function within the auditory system
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Dictionary unit
A component of Treisman’s attenuation theory of attention. This processing unit contains stored words and thresholds for activating the words
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Distraction
a thing that prevents someone from concentrating on something else.
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Divided attention
a type of simultaneous attention that allows us to process different information sources and successfully carry out multiple tasks at a time
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Dopamine Beta Hydroxylase (DBH) gene
an enzyme responsible for the conversion of dopamine into noradrenaline. Alteration of the dopamine/noradrenaline levels can result in hyperactivity
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Dopamine Transporter (DAT1) gene
an established genetic risk factor for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It mediates the reuptake of dopamine from the synapse
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Early selection model
proposed by Broadbent, posits that stimuli are filtered, or selected to be attended to, at an early stage during processing
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Feature integration theory
a theory of attention developed in 1980 by Anne Treisman and Garry Gelade that suggests that when perceiving a stimulus, features are “registered early, automatically, and in parallel, while objects are identified separately” and at a later stage in processing
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Feature search
a visual search process that focuses on identifying a previously requested target amongst distractors that differ from the target by a unique visual feature such as color, shape, orientation, or size
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Filter model of attention
posits that stimuli are filtered, or selected to be attended to, at an early stage during processing
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Fixation
the state in which an individual becomes obsessed with an attachment to another human, an animal, or an inanimate object
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Focused attention stage
The second stage of feature integration theory, where a subject combines individual features of an object to perceive the whole object.
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High-load task
the target is surrounded by a number of different, angular, shapes.
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Hyperactivity
means a person seems to move about constantly, including in situations in which it is not appropriate; or excessively fidgets, taps, or talks. In adults, it may be extreme restlessness or wearing others out with constant activity.
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Illusory conjunctions
psychological effects in which participants combine features of two objects into one object
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Impulsivity
means a person makes hasty actions that occur in the moment without first thinking about them and that may have a high potential for harm, or a desire for immediate rewards or inability to delay gratification
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Inattention
means a person wanders off task, lacks persistence, has difficulty sustaining focus, and is disorganized; and these problems are not due to defiance or lack of comprehension.
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Inattentional blindness
the failure to notice a fully-visible, but unexpected object because attention was engaged on another task, event, or object
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Late selection models of attention
argue that information is selected after processing for meaning, as opposed to during the earlier stages of processing
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Load theory of attention
a theory proposing that the extent to which people can focus their attention in the face of irrelevant distractions depends on the level and type of information load involved in their current task
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Low-load task
the target is surrounded by a number of identical round shapes
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Overt attention
direct focus or when an individual has their eyes directly focused on something
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Perceptual load
the amount of information involved in the processing of the task stimuli
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Preattentive stage
the subconscious accumulation of information from the environment
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Processing capacity
the number of operations a processor can perform in a set amount of time
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Ritalin
a nervous system stimulant that’s commonly used to treat ADHD in adults and children
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Saccadic eye movement
rapid, ballistic movements of the eyes that abruptly change the point of fixation
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Saliency map
an image that shows each pixel’s unique quality
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Selective attention
the process of focusing on a particular object in the environment for a certain period of time
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Shadowing
an experimental technique in which subjects repeat speech immediately after hearing it
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Spatial selective attention
allows humans to selectively process visual information through prioritization of an area within the visual field
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Stimulus salience
the features of objects in the environment attract our attention
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Stroop effect
a demonstration of cognitive interference where a delay in the reaction time of a task occurs due to a mismatch in stimuli.
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Sustained attention
the ability to endogenously maintain an alert state in the absence of exogenous support
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Topographic map
detailed, accurate graphic representations of features that appear on the Earth’s surface
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Unilateral spatial neglect
a restricted syndrome in which patients fail to copy one side (usually the left) of a figure, fail to read one side of words or sentences, and bisect lines far to the right of center
The image below demonstrates responses to a task that we would expect from someone experiencing ______________. This may occur with damage to the right cerebral hemisphere
The image below demonstrates responses to a task that we would expect from someone experiencing unilateral spatial neglect. This may occur with damage to the right cerebral hemisphere
What is this test?
The Sustained Attention to Response Test (SART)
