Chapter 4 Flashcards
dichotic listening task
- involves the presentation of 2 different messages at the same time into the left and right ear
- verbally repeat the message in the attended ear
broadbents filter model
- a model of attention based on the findings of dichotic listening tasks
- attention acts as a filter that lets attended stimuli through and blocks to-be-ignored information
- first flow diagram of the mind
sensory memory
holds incoming unanalyzed sensory stimuli for a brief duration
iconic memory
holds visual stimuli for .24 - .50 seconds
echoic memory
holds auditory stimuli for 1-3 seconds
detector
- information from the attended message that passes through the filter stage is then processed for higher-level characteristics
- the stage where the stimulus is recognized
problems with the filter model
it does not explain why the meaning of the ignored message can still be processed at times
short-term memory
- incoming information from the detectors is held here for 10-15 seconds without rehearsing the information
- repeated/rehearsed information can remain in short-term beyond 15 secs
- transfers info to long-term memory
attention
focusing on specific features, objects, or locations or on certain thoughts or activities
selective attention
the ability to focus on one message and ignore all others
distraction
occurs when one stimulus interferes with attention to or the processing of another stimulus
divided attention
the ability to pay attention to, or carry out, two or more different tasks simultaneously
attentional capture
a rapid shifting of attention, usually caused by a stimulus such as a loud noise, bright light, or sudden movement
visual scanning
movement of the eyes from one location or object to another
cocktail party effect
the ability to focus on one stimulus while filtering out other stimuli, especially at a party where there are a lot of simultaneous conversations
treismans model of attention
- attention acts as an attenuator that attenuates ignored information
- info is analyzed by the attenuator for the messages physical characteristics, language and meaning
dictionary unit
- that consists of words in memory with varying thresholds for detection
- words with low activation threshold are likely to be detected
- e.g. salient/common or important words like our name
late selection models of attention
model of selective attention that proposes that selection of stimuli for final processing does not occur until after the information in the message has been analyzed for meaning
mackays late selection model
information is filtered after the meaning of the message is recognized
mackays 1973 study
- given pairs of sentences after listening to a sentence and asked to select which sentence is closest in meaning to what they heard
- tt would be clear based on which sentence is picked whether the attended or unattended message had been processed
lavies load theory of attention
- focuses on the amount of information that can be processed at one time based on task difficulty
- the ability to ignore task-irrelevant stimuli depends on the load of the task the person is carrying out
processing capacity
amount of information one can process at a time
processing load
difficulty of the task
high-load tasks
- difficult task
- use more of the processing capacity and won’t leave room for other irrelevant stimuli/distractions to be processed