COGNITIVE LECTURE - 2

ATTENTION

Limitations of attention -

Top down and bottom up process 

SElective attention

Spotlight theory e.g. flanker task

Inattentional blindness - limits processing 

Control of attention 

Attentional control 

inhibition and control e.g. stroop task 

control and anxiety e.g. emotional stroop task

Selective attention 

Endogenous - Topdown, goal driven, Voluntary, slow, effortful, pre frontal cortex

Exogenous - Bottom uo, stimulus driven, automatic, fast, inflexible, superior colliculus

Sputlight theory of visual attention - Posner 1980

Attention like spotlight

In spotlight = attended to 

Not = unnoticed 

Eriksen and Eriksen 

Attend to central target and ignore flanking distractors 

Poor selectove attention = greater interference 

Effects of emotion on the flanker task 

Rowe, Hirsch, Anderson 2006

3 moods

2 compatibilities 

3 designs 

SLower response in incompatible trials 

SLower reactio times when flankers near 

Positive moods increased flanker effect 

Flanker effect for distant distractors remainsed for positive mood but not neutral 

Frederickson 1998

Psoitive psychology e.g. joy, contentment, love

Positive emotions broaden thought/action repertoires and build enduring personal resources 

INTRO BRIEF EXPLAIN OF SPOTLIGHT TEHORY AND A THEORY USED IT ? WHY ITS RATIONAL TO USE

Positive affect = More attention to wider focus

Negative affect = more attention on central details, narrowed focus 

Limitations of processing 

Simon and Levin 1998

Ran experiment on campus 

1 - stop someoen and ask for directions - give directions - 2 other experimenters walk inbetween with distractions - they swap - did person notice the change? 

50% didnt notice 

Change blidnness - Failure to notice changes made to visual scene 

O'Regan - visual world is a gran illusion 

Limited resources/ capacity 

Change detection 

Change in environment:

elicits motion transient 

Abrupt and captures attention automatically 

Disruption of motion transient - change hard to spot 

Shapiro 2000 - Average of 20 seconds 

Resink, O'Regan, Clark 1997 - Change blindness 

Investigations 

Flicker paradigm - 'spot the difference'

Mud splash - mirror what happens in real world e.g. water on screen wiipe did you notice change?

Eye movements 

Real world investigations 

Why change blindness occurs 

Attention& Processing 

Attention - Must be allocated to location of change if its to be detected ( central changes spotted faster than peripheral ones)

Processing - Changing item must be processed to allow for representation to be generated (relevant changes spotted faster than irrelevant changes)

Inattentional blindness - 

Look dont see

Focus on processing certain info so we miss other info 

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