Selective Attention Flashcards
Explain the settings and the results of the cost of dividing attention
setting
> dichotic presentation, however just using simpler tones rather than speech
> selective attention (SEL)
target tone = only appearing in the attended channel
success rate = 67%
> excluding OR (EOR)
both channels are attending channels, and the target tone will appear in either of the channels, but not the simultaneously
Success rate = 52%
> including OR (IOR)
both channels are attending channels, and the target tone will appear in both channels, and simultaneously
Success rate = 31%
Explain the applications of the cost of divided attention
early and late attention explain one of the two phenomena
early
> explains the deficit between SEL and EOR
> attenuation occurs at the filter, therefore there is deficit (the splitting of attention attenuates the performance)
> how does not explain the deficit between EOR and IOR
> if the filtering happens before the semantic process, the meaning of the target tone should not affect the result
late
> late
> does not explain the SEL EOR deficit
> since if only one inout is going through the filter, it should not affect the strength of the input
> does explain the EOR IOR deficit
> since if two pertinent signals are going through the filter at the same time, there is competition, and therefore strength is weakened.
What are the next debate on selection attention framework
structural theories (filter)
some neurons can only handle one stimulus at a time
if there are more stimuli to be processed, there will be competition
(ES = bottleneck going in; LS = bottleneck going out)
capacity theory
information processing requires mental work
mental work = neuron activation
neuron activation = limited capacity
What is the capacity theory illustrating
capacity for attention is limited
if most attention is diverted to the primary task > the primary task does well + the second task does not that well
if attention is split across two task > similar outcome
What are the experiments that support capacity limited theories
using phone while driving = increase RT and rate of missing red lights
dual task performance experiment
> central task = identifying whether the middle letter is a “t” or and “f” (most attention should be allocated)
> peripheral task
> easy gist processing task (better result, showing that easy task is not affected by divided attention)
> harder disk phase task (worse result, affected by divided attention)
Capacity theory explaining attention performance trade-offs
the performance of the task can be explained (calculated) by the amount of attention allocated to the respective tasks
(graceful degradation)
Experiments explaining the the trade-off
easy (detection) task: no trade-off observed. divided atttention seems not to affect the performance on the detection tasks
hard (discrimination) task: trade-off is observed according to the graceful degradation
How does limited capacity explain unintentional blindness
since attention is limited, when all attention is used to focus on one stimulus, therefore the other stimulus may be missed.
Explain the relationship between eye movement and attention
usually saccadic eye movement = attention; however, in some cases covert attention (attention whilst there is no eye movement)
what is the metaphor that michael posner proposed, and the spatial cueing paradigm experiment
the spotlight attention metaphor
spatial cueing paradigm experiment
> focus on the cross
> cue indicating the location of the stimulus will be presented
> short array of waiting time between the cue and the stimulus (stimulus onset asynchrony)
condition 1:
> cued condition (80%): the cue directs the attention to the stimulus
condition 2:
> miscued condition (20%): the cue directs to the opposite direction to the stimulus
condition 3:
> neutral condition: the cue does not indicate any direction.
what are the results of the paradigm experiment and the possible explanations
condition 1 = quicker RT comparing to 2 and 3
explanation
switching time:
similar to broadbent, attention requires the switching of the filter, which hinders the performance of the tasks. In this case, the cue directs and switches the attention to the direction. If the stimulus is not at that direction, switching is required, therefore slows the process
capacity theory:
attention is limited. when the cue is presented, most attention is shifted to that direction. Therefore, if the stimulus is presented on the other side instead, less cognition power to react, therefore worse performance
what are the two systems of attention orientation, and the respective cues
endogenous (voluntary) system, which is used for central (symbolic) cues
exogenous (reflexive) system, which is used for peripheral (spatial) cues
what are the experiments that support the two separate systems of attention orientation
the different reactions of the cues to the different SOA
central cues: last longer, but peak at around 300 ms
> if the target on the cued side = slower RT; if the target on the uncued side = quicker RT)
peripheral cue: last shorter, peaks at 150ms, rises rapidly and saliently, but drops quickly
even shows a sign of inhibition of return, which is not shown for central cues
> during the course of inhibition of return, the uncued location is faster than the cued location (if it is valid cue)
> Also, during the course of IOR, invalid cues predict better performance than valid cues
explanation for the inhibition of return
> ecobiological explanation of allow us to build a mental map in the brain and better explore the environment
capacity theory
> when a person is performing a primary cognitive task and a secondary attention cueing effect task, the type of cues affect the performance of the secondary task (i.e., central task affects the performance as most cognitive power is used for the primary task. Meanwhile, peripheral task does not affect the performance, as no cognitive power is used)
