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Attention as a

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Title: Attention as a


1
Chapter 9
  • Attention as a
  • Limited Capacity Resource

Concept Preparation for and performance of motor
skills are influenced by our limited capacity to
select and attend to information
2
Defining the Term Attention andMultiple Task
Performance
  • Attention refers to characteristics associated
    with
  • Consciousness
  • Awareness
  • Cognitive effort
  • As they relate to the performance of skills, with
    particular reference to the limitations
    associated with those characteristics on the
  • Simultaneous performance of multiple skills
  • Detection of relevant information in the
    performance environment

3
Attention and Multiple Task Performance
  • When we simultaneously perform multiple tasks
    (e.g. driving a car, listening to a CD, and
    talking with a passenger)
  • we sometimes experience no difficulties in
    performing all the tasks, but
  • we sometimes cannot do all the tasks as we would
    like
  • WHY?
  • Answer relates to attention as a performance
    limiting factor

4
Attention Theories
  • Filter Theories (a.k.a. bottleneck theories)
  • Difficulty doing multiple tasks simultaneously
    because of limitation due to serial processing of
    multiple stimuli see Fig. 9-1
  • Alternative Theories (Resource capacity theories)
  • Difficulty doing multiple tasks simultaneously
    because of limitation due to availability of
    resources needed to carry out tasks
  • i.e. resource capacity limits
  • Simultaneous performance of multiple tasks can
    occur as long as the resource capacity limits not
    exceeded

5
Attention Theories, contd
  • Central Resource Capacity Theories
  • Propose one central (i.e., CNS) source of
    attention resources for which all activities
    requiring attention compete

Task A Driving car
Task B Talking with passenger
Flexible attention capacity
  • Kahnemans Attention Theory An Example of a
    Central Resource Capacity Theory
  • Equates attention with cognitive effort
  • Proposed flexible attention capacity limits
  • See Figure 9.3

6
Kahnemans Attention Theory, contd
Miscellaneous determinants
  • Arousal level The factor that influences the
    amount of attention capacity for a specific
    performance situation
  • Amount of attention resources available (i.e.
    capacity) varies in relation to a persons
    arousal level
  • Maximum amount available only when arousal level
    is optimal for the situation
  • Relate to inverted-U function of arousal
    performance relationship
  • Evaluation of attention requirements of multiple
    tasks to be performed
  • Critical factor for determining whether
    sufficient attention resources available given
    capacity limits set by arousal level

Misc. manifestations of arousal
Arousal
Available capacity
Enduring dispositions
Allocation policy
Momentary intentions
Evaluation of demands on capacity
Possible activities
Responses
7
Kahnemans Attention Theory, contd
Miscellaneous determinants
  • 3 rules people use to allocate available
    attention resources when performing multiple
    tasks
  • Ensure completion of at least one task
  • Enduring dispositions Involuntary attention
    allocation, e.g.,
  • Novel for the situation
  • Meaningfulness of the event (e.g., cocktail
    party phenomenon)
  • Momentary intentions
  • Allocate attention according to instructions

Misc. manifestations of arousal
Arousal
Available capacity
Enduring dispositions
Allocation policy
Momentary intentions
Evaluation of demands on capacity
Possible activities
Responses
8
Multiple Resource Theories
  • Alternative to theories proposing one central
    resource
  • Propose that we have several sources for
    attention
  • Each source has a limited capacity of resources
  • The multiple sources based on specific
    information processing component
  • Sensory input (e.g. visual, proprioceptive)
  • Response output (e.g. verbal, motor)
  • Type of memory code (e.g. spatial, verbal)
  • Performance of simultaneous multiple tasks
    depends on competition for attention resources
    within and between the multiple sources

9
Procedures for Assessing Attention Demands
  • Dual-task procedure determine the attention
    demands and characteristics of the simultaneous
    performance of two different tasks
  • Primary task is the task of interest
  • Secondary task performance is the basis to make
    inferences about the attention demands of the
    primary task

10
Focusing Attention
  • Attentional focus
  • The marshalling of attention resources to direct
    them to specific characteristics of our
    performance or performance environment
  • Width of focus
  • Focus can be broad or narrow
  • Direction of focus
  • Focus can be external or internal
  • Attention switching
  • The changing of attention focus characteristics
    in a situation that allows successful performance

11
Focusing Attention on Movements vs. Movement
Effects
  • Concerns direction of attentional focus Does
    internal or external direction matter?
  • Action effect hypothesis (Prinz, 1997)
  • Proposed benefit of external focus during
    performance
  • Focus attention on intended outcome of
    movements rather than on movements themselves

12
Attention and Automaticity
  • Automaticity Performance of a skill (or parts
    of a skill) without requiring attention resources
  • Automaticity of task performance related to
    amount of practice
  • Question that remains for researchers to answer
    How automated does the performance of complex
    skills become?

13
Visual Selective Attention
  • The study of attention as it relates to the use
    of vision in the selection of environmental
    information in the preparation and/or performance
    of an action
  • Visual search is the process of directing visual
    attention to locate relevant information (i.e.,
    cues) in the environment

14
Visual Selective Attention, contd
  • Eye-movement recordings are commonly used to
    investigate visual selective attention
  • Important question is What is the relationship
    between eye movements and visual selective
    attention does what a person is looking at
    (point of gaze) indicate where visual selective
    attention is directed?
  • It is possible to direct attention to an
    environmental feature without directly looking at
    it
  • Remember, eye-movement recordings identify focal
    vision not peripheral vision
  • It is not possible to make an eye movement
    without also making a shift in attention

15
How We Select Visual Cues?
  • Visual search and intended actions
  • An active search for regulatory conditions
    based on action goal
  • e.g. Research by Bekkering Neggers (2002)
    showed different visual search patterns for the
    action goals pointing to an object and grasping
    the object
  • Feature integration theory
  • Initially search according to specific features
    (e.g., color, shape)
  • Direct attentional spotlight on environment
    (wide or narrow focus)
  • features of interest pop out

16
Visual Search and Action Preparation
  • Visual search picks up cues that influence 3
    aspects of action preparation
  • Action selection
  • Constraining of the selected action
  • Timing of action initiation
  • Note how these three preparation processes
    influenced by visual search in
  • Open motor skills
  • Closed motor skills

See examples in the textbook
17
Visual Search and Action Preparation
  • Visual search picks up cues that influence 3
    aspects of action preparation
  • Action selection
  • Constraining of the selected action
  • Timing of action initiation
  • Note how these three preparation processes
    influenced by visual search in
  • Open motor skills
  • Closed motor skills

See examples in the textbook
18
Training Visual Search Strategies
  • Search strategies can be learned, however, they
    must be specific to an activity.
  • There is little evidence of benefit derived from
    generalized visual training programs
  • It ignores the general finding that experts
    recognize specific patterns more readily than do
    novices
  • Visual search success is experience based
  • Often results from implicit learning of relevant
    visual cues
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