Chapter 5 - Attention and performance Flashcards
Focused attention
A situation in which individuals try to attend to only one source of information while ignoring other stimuli; also known as selective attention.
Divided attention.
A situation in which two tasks are performed at the same time; also known as multi-tasking.
Cocktail party problem
The difficulties involved in attending to one voice when two or more people are speaking at the same time.
Dichotic listening task
A different auditory message is presented to each ear and attention has to be directed to one message.
Shadowing
Repeating one auditory message word for word as it is presented while a second auditory message is also presented; it is used on the dichotic listening task.
Split attention
Allocation of attention to two (or more) non-adjacent regions of visual space.
Hemifield
One half of the visual field. Information from the left hemifield of each eye proceeds to the right hemisphere and information from the right hemifield proceeds to the left hemisphere.
Inhibition of return
A reduced probability of visual attention returning to a recently attended location or object.
Covert attention
Attention to an object in the absence of an eye movement towards it.
Default mode network
A network of brain regions that is active “by default” when an individual is not involved in a current task; it is associated with internal processes including mind-wandering, remembering the past and imagining the future.
Neglect
A disorder involving right-hemisphere damage (typically) in which the left side of objects and/or objects presented to the left visual field are undetected; the condition resembles extinction but is more severe.
Pseudo-neglect
A slight tendency in healthy individuals to favour the left side of visual space.
Extinction
A disorder of visual attention in which a stimulus presented to the side opposite the brain damage is not detected when another stimulus is presented at the same time to the side of the brain damage.
Visual search
A task involving the rapid detection of a specified target stimulus within a visual display.
Illusory conjunction
Mistakenly combining features from two different stimuli to perceive an object that is not present.
Fovea
A small area within the retina in the centre in the field of vision where visual acuity is greatest.
Visual crowding
The inability to recognise objects in peripheral vision due to the presence of neighbouring objects.
Cross-modal attention
The coordination of attention across two or more modalities (e.g., vision and audition).
Ventriloquism effect
The mistaken perception that sounds are coming from their apparent source (as in ventriloquism).
Temporal ventriloquism effect
Misperception of the timing of a visual stimulus when an auditory stimulus is presented close to it in time.
Endogenous spatial attention
Attention to a stimulus controlled by intentions or goal-directed mechanisms.
Exogenous spatial attention
Attention is given spatial location determined by “automatic” processes.
Multi-tasking
Performing two or more tasks at the same time by switching rapidly between them.
Underadditivity
The finding that brain activation when tasks A and B are performed at the same time is less than the sum of the brain activation when tasks A and B are performed separately.
Psychological refractory period (PRP) effect
The slowing of the response to the second of two stimuli when presented close together in time.
Stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA)
Time interval between the start of two stimuli.
Crosstalk
In dual-task conditions, the direct interference between the tasks that is sometimes found.
Backward crosstalk effect
Aspect of Task 2 influence response selection and performance speed on Task 1 in studies on the Psychological Refractory Period (PRP) effect.
