Exam 2 Flashcards
Models of Attention:
What is attention?
o Limiting; paying attention to one thing and not others
o Critical for conscious awareness
o Goal is to focus on what’s most important (enhance some things and inhibit others)
Models of Attention:
Describe the Early Selection Model. Who proposed this model?
- Broadbent
- attention selects before identification
- encoding (followed by gate) then identification, response selection, response execution
Models of Attention:
Describe Broadbent’s dichotic listening experiment that provided evidence for the Early Selection Model
- dichotic listening - 2 diff inputs, one through each ear
- story in one ear, words in other - subjects had to repeat words
- had difficulty answering question about the ear they were ignoring but could answer very basic questions (like was its a tone/noise, pitch of voice)
Models of Attention:
Describe the Late Selection Model. What researchers proposed it?
- Deutsch and Deutsch
- attention selects after identification
- encoding, identification, (gate), response selection, response execution
Models of Attention:
Describe the “Flanker Task” used by Deutsch and Deutsch to prove the Late Selection model
- one target letter, and distracter on either side
- identify target letter and hit corresponding button
- incongruent - flankers match other response, not target
- congruent - flankers match target
- neutral - flankers diff from target
Models of Attention:
Describe the Attenuation Theory. Who proposed it?
- proposed by Treisman
- Attention does select early but the filter isn’t strong
- what you inhibit can come through in a weakened state
- ex. in conversation with someone but hear name called far away
Models of Attention:
Describe the Load Theory. Who proposed it?
- Lavie
- cognitive load: how much stuff you’re dealing with
- default is to process everything
- low load: process everything; late selection
- high load: selective (early selection)
Endogenous & Exogenous Attention:
How does attention shift in regards to exogenous attention?
- exogenous attention: reflexive attention shift; something in environment
- overt: eyes’ gaze shift
- covert: eyes/head stay fixed
Endogenous & Exogenous Attention:
How does attention shift in regards to endogenous attention?
- voluntary attention shift
- choose to focus attention
- overt: eyes and head shift
- covert: eyes fixed
Endogenous & Exogenous Attention:
What is the Posner cuing paradigm? Explain its method
- measures shift in attention
- stay focused on center point
- boxes/placeholders where target may appear
- cue appears in either box; indicate where target might occur
- directional cue thought to elicit endogenous shift
- flash cue to elicit exogenous attention shift
- “valid” trial - target appears where cue was
- “invalid” - other location
- response time varies on whether valid or invalid trial
- valid RT fastest
- if attention already shifted where target shows up you can start identifying more quickly (takes longer to shift attention and identify in invalid trial)
Endogenous & Exogenous Attention:
How do Kingstone et al. challenge the distinction between reflexive vs voluntary attention shifts?
- used method involving looking at picture of eye gaze
- eye gaze as central cue and can cause shift depending on direction eyes are gazing
- found that central eyes trigger exogenous shifts (even though they shouldn’t according to previous studies)
- eyes elicit exogenous attention shifts bc they have social significance
Controlled and Automatic Processing:
What is the difference between controlled and automatic processing?
- Automatic processing: no attention required
- Controlled processing: requires executive functions and control
Controlled and Automatic Processing:
What cognitive abilities are considered “executive control?” What part of the brain is associated with executive control?
- manipulating info, complex processes like planning, control
- prefrontal cortex, specifically dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
Controlled and Automatic Processing:
How is the Stroop Task an example of the difference between controlled and automatic processing?
- colored words task
- SAY color of font, NOT the word which is name of a color
- difficult task bc reading is automatic for simple words
- have to control impulse to read the word and instead read ink color
Controlled and Automatic Processing:
How did the Payne study contrast controlled and automatic processing?
- looked at how implicit racial biases contribute to automatic/controlled processes
- subjects had to identify object as gun or tool; target object preceded by face of white or black male flashed
- exp. 1 no time limit - RT faster when pairing face of black male with gun, result low error rate, time to override automatic processing with controlled processing
- exp 2: time limit, higher error rate, automatic processing (no time to override), more willing to respond w/ automatic processing bc of time limit
Selective and Divided Attention:
What is the difference between selective and divided attention?
- Selective attention: focuses on some things; location or object
- Divided attention: ability to split attention across different stimuli or locations ; attention shifts between multiple tasks; limited in how it can be divided
Selective and Divided Attention:
Is attention capable of being divided (true multi-tasking)?
- Attention shifts between multiple tasks
- however can perform two tasks at the same type if they use separate functions and have no interference
Selective and Divided Attention:
What sort of shift costs result from alternating tasks?
- shift-cost- takes longer to do tasks simultaneously than if did them on their own; shifting attention between tasks adds up
- mixing cost: having 2 different task sets loaded; also makes you perform task more slowly
- shift cost can be reduced with warning person so they can prepare and plan
Attention Failures and Deficits:
What is inattentional blindness? Describe the experiment that tested it
- people paying attention to certain stimuli ignore/don’t see other stimuli
- Simon and Chabris study
- basic shapes - count how many times shapes bounce off side of screen, occasionally a shape passes through the middle and people don’t see this
- focus on some stimuli and inhibit other stimuli - other stimuli doesn’t reach level of identification
Attention Failures and Deficits:
What is change blindness?
- don’t see a change, especially if quick
Attention Failures and Deficits:
Describe the Flicker Paradigm change blindness example
- something changers between two images (blank screen in between, “flicker”)
- attention lookds at each item and asks “is this what’s changing?”
Attention Failures and Deficits:
Describe the Mudsplats change blindness example
- put up “visual noise” or “mask”
- disruptive enough to make it more difficult to see the change
Attention Failures and Deficits:
Describe the Gradual Changes change blindness example
- program gradually changes from one image to other image (ex. an object fades from image)
- usually more difficult to find difference
Attention Failures and Deficits:
Describe the Color-Changing Card Trick and “Door” Study change blindness examples
- Cards: several aspects of environment changed but focused on cards and don’t notice changes
- door: someone giving directions; door comes by and person needing directions switches; 50% of participants didn’t notice the change; focused on giving directions
Attention Failures and Deficits:
What is the attentional blink? Describe the RSVP method used to study it
- attentional blink: presented with lots of info very quickly; attention limited in capacity
- RSVP: Rapid Serial Visual Presentation
- presents stimuli quicjkly one at a time(ex. numbers and target were letters mixed in)
- accuracy at identifying 2nd target good if follows first target
- worse if short distance from target
- gets better with more distance between targets
- why: try to identify first letter but when presented with number tries to hang onto first target; decays before have chance to identify second target
Attention Failures and Deficits:
What is attentional control?
- ability to control attention
- can reduce impact of distracters
Attention Failures and Deficits:
What is sustained attention?
- can focus on something of interest
- not limitless
Attention Failures and Deficits:
How is attentional control impacted in individuals with ADD? Describe the two studies
- Li, Lin, Chang, Hung (2004)
- attentional blink method
- ADHD ind. - attention gate closes more slowly, allowing more info in initially; and takes longer for the gate to open up again
Attention Failures and Deficits:
Which type of attention is impacted by ADD or ADHD?
- selective attention
- also less attentional control
Attention Applications:
What are some factors that can make it difficult to study for tests?
- should limit distractions while studying; can produce mixture costs
Attention Applications:
What are challenges facing baggage screeners than can make it difficult to find weapons?
- cluttered images
- objects at differnt/odd angles so don’t look like real life objects
- used to seeing certain items (ex.water bottles) not sued to seeing explosives
What are the challenges facing lifeguards that can make it difficult to find people who are drowning?
- disagreement on what is important to look at and how severe things are
Attention Applications:
What did Strayer et al’s study reveal about cell phone conversations while driving?
- talking on phone pulls attention from road
- exp. 1: people on phone took longer to press brake, longer to let go of it, longer to reach min. speed, also increased following distance
- exp 2: people on phone had less memory of billboards passed while driving
- exp: 4 took longer to identify words if on cell phone
Memory Models & Stages:
Describe the Atkinson-Shiffrin Model (Multi-Store Memory)
- SENSORY MEMORY: hangs onto info breifly to determine if relevant, if yes then pay ATTENTION and transfer to short-term
- SHORT-TERM (info may get TRANSFERred into long-term)
- LONG-TERM: retrieval processes an bring this info back into STM to enable response output
Memory Models & Stages:
What is the capacity and duration of short-term memory?
- duration: less than 30 sec
- capacity: 7 plus or minus 2 items
Memory Models & Stages:
What is the duration and capacity of long-term memory?
- duration: potentially lifelong
- capacity: potentially infinite
Memory Models & Stages:
Describe the Baddeley & Hitch Model
- 2 stores & 1 central executive in between them
- visuospatial sketchpad: focuses on spatial and visual info
- phonological loop: focuses on sound info
- central executive: determines what gets put into working memory, which store gets the info, can integrate info involving both sound and visual/spatial, manipulation
Memory Models & Stages:
How is the Baddeley and Hitch Model different from the Attkinson and Shiffrin Model?
- STM is “working memory” - not passive store; allows you to compare, manipulate info
- central executive
Memory Models & Stages:
What evidence do Baddeley and Hitch provide for the visuospatial sketchpad?
- “corners of the F” task
- imagine walking along F, asked what direction/turn next corner is (Spatial)
- can respond with words or with spatial task
- spatial response impaired bc also uses visuospatial sketchpad
- interference when using the same system
Memory Models and Stages: What evidence do Baddeley and Hitch provide for the Central Executive?
- Alzheimer’s and non-Alzheimer’s subjects
- primary spatial task
- secondary task may be neither verbal or spatial, verbal, memory
- overall Alzheimer’s patients performed more poorly
- evidence that frontal lobe may contain central executive functions
Memory Models & Stages:
Describe the 4 effects of the phonological loop
- phonological similarity effect: difficulty keeping similar sounding letters in memory
- irrelevant speech effect: listening to verbal info while hearing speech causes interference in storing verbal info
- word-length effect: can remember 4.5 single syllable words, 2.6 more syllables; rehearsal process (“saying” it in memory takes longer with longer words)
- articulatory suppression: keep verbal info in memory while saying something different interferes with storing verbal info
Memory Types & Processes:
What are declarative memories? What are the types of declarative memories?
- declarative/explicit: can consciously report them, can freely retrieve
- episodic: memories of things that happened to you
- semantic: memories of knowledge and info
Memory Types & Processes:
What are nondeclarative memories? What type of memory is nondeclarative?
- nondeclarative/implicit: don’t have ready for conscious retrieval
- procedural: memories of skills
Memory Types & Processes:
What is encoding?
- creating a memory
- important structures involved are hippocampus and prefrontal cortex
Memory Types & Processes:
Who was H.M? What abilities were affected and what were intact?
- suffered head injury from bike, had severe seizures originating near hippocampus
- part of hippocampus removed
- short-term memory intact
- long-term memories from before surgery intact (they aren’t stored in hippocampus)
- intact non-declarative
- couldn’t make new episodic memories
Memory Types & Processes:
What is consolidation?
- strengthening memories
- memories stored throughout brain
Memory Types & Processes:
What is retrieval? How does it occur?
- accessing a memory
- retrieval cues: aspects of the memory that helps access it (ex. certain scent)
Memory Types & Processes:
What makes memories stronger?
- attention
- elaboration of meaning (processing things deeply, making connections)
- generation efffect: force self to actively retrieve the info
- spacing effect: space studying to have more opportunities to retrieve it
- state-dependent: recall in similar phys.,psy, emotional state as when memory was made
Memory Types & Processes:
What is state-dependent memory? Describe the evidence Godden & Baddeley found in their experiment. Also Teasdale and Russell’s experiment.
- psychological, physical, emotional state when trying to retrieve the memory matches when memory was made
- Godden & Baddeley: free-recall words in same environment (wet or dry) better
- Teasdale and Russell: mood-dependent, recalled more words which matched state (ex. neg words with depressed state)
Memory Types & Processes:
What is forgetting?
- no longer able to recall a memory which had been previously encoded
Memory Types & Processes:
What is the difference between decay and interference?
- decay: broken down
- interference: something preventing you from accessing at the time
Memory Types & Processes:
What is the difference between proactive and retroactive interference?
- proactive: old info interfering with storing new info; forward in time
- retroactive: backward in time; new info interfering with recalling old info
Memory Errors:
What effect does misattribution have on memory?
- attribute info to wrong source
Memory Errors:
What effect do inferences have on memory? What did Sulin and Dooling find regarding this?
- inferences drawn when experiencing the event
- Sulin and Dooling: paragraph about a girl, one group had paragraph with name Helen Keller, subjects formed false memory that paragraph contained the words “deaf” and “blind”
Memory Errors:
What effect does suggestion have on memory?
- info presented after experience can impact how it’s remembered
Memory Errors:
Describe Loftus and Palmer’s experiment
- car crash judgments
- content of verb presented in question influenced speed estimates (“smashed” elicited higher speed estimates)
- exp. 2 false memories of broken glass more likely to be formed if verb smashed was used
Memory Errors:
What are flashbulb memories? What makes them special?
- typically formed after traumatic events
- incredibly vivid, like reliving experience and feel very true
- adrenaline can help people remember things better
Memory Errors:
Are flashbulb memories accurate? Describe McCloskey et al.’s findings regarding flashbulb memories and the Challenger explosion.
- some aspects of the memory can change
- like how you found out
- who you were with
- findings -only 7% of participants had same memory three years apart
Memory Applications:
What factors that influence memory strength are beneficial for studying?
- generation effect
- spacing effect
- active listening
- don’t spend too long on one subject
Memory Applications:
What factors influence eyewitness testimony?
- amount of time that has passed since event occurred
- exposure to information after the event may alter memory
- cross-race identification
- leading questions that suggest a certain answer
Memory Applications: What was the repressed memory debate?
- 1990s Freudian therapists were using leading questions and hypnosis on patients
- therapists suggested that the patients had experienced some form of sexual abuse in childhood
- hypnosis increases suggestibility and potential to form false memories
- many patients did “recover” memories of past abuse, but did these actually happen or were these false memories
Memory Applications:
Describe the problems with the eyewitness account in the Lockerbie bombing case
- passenger plane bombed over Scotland, police recovered suitcase which had pajamas
- 9 months passed between the event and when shopkeeper was questioned
- shopkeeper’s details were conflicting/inconsistent in different interviews
- he had seen the suspect’s face on poster, could have changed his memory
- cross-racial identification can be a factor
- possible miscarriage of justice with this case
Memory Applications:
Describe the Fells Acres Daycare case
- arrest and conviction of man, sister and mother
- conviction based on testimony of children
- child reported 3 months late that he had been inappropriately touched (he had wet his pants and been changed)
- issues with child testimonies:
- amount of time
- suggestibility
- social influences
- repeated questions
- use of dolls
- understandability of questions
