scholarly journals Selective attention modulates the effect of target location probability on redundant signal processing

2016 ◽  
Vol 78 (6) ◽  
pp. 1603-1624 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ting-Yun Chang ◽  
Daniel R. Little ◽  
Cheng-Ta Yang
2001 ◽  
Vol 54 (4) ◽  
pp. 1105-1124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuhong Jiang ◽  
Marvin M. Chun

The effect of selective attention on implicit learning was tested in four experiments using the “contextual cueing” paradigm (Chun & Jiang, 1998, 1999). Observers performed visual search through items presented in an attended colour (e.g., red) and an ignored colour (e.g., green). When the spatial configuration of items in the attended colour was invariant and was consistently paired with a target location, visual search was facilitated, showing contextual cueing (Experiments 1, 3, and 4). In contrast, repeating and pairing the configuration of the ignored items with the target location resulted in no contextual cueing (Experiments 2 and 4). We conclude that implicit learning is robust only when relevant, predictive information is selectively attended.


Author(s):  
Stacey G. Kane ◽  
Kelly M. Dean ◽  
Emily Buss

Purpose Knowing target location can improve adults' speech-in-speech recognition in complex auditory environments, but it is unknown whether young children listen selectively in space. This study evaluated masked word recognition with and without a pretrial cue to location to characterize the influence of listener age and masker type on the benefit of spatial cues. Method Participants were children (5–13 years of age) and adults with normal hearing. Testing occurred in a 180° arc of 11 loudspeakers. Targets were spondees produced by a female talker and presented from a randomly selected loudspeaker; that location was either known, based on a pretrial cue, or unknown. Maskers were two sequences comprising spondees or speech-shaped noise bursts, each presented from a random loudspeaker. Speech maskers were produced by one male talker or by three talkers, two male and one female. Results Children and adults benefited from the pretrial cue to target location with the three-voice masker, and the magnitude of benefit increased with increasing child age. There was no benefit of location cues in the one-voice or noise-burst maskers. Incorrect responses in the three-voice masker tended to correspond to masker words produced by the female talker, and in the location-known condition, those masker intrusions were more likely near the cued loudspeaker for both age groups. Conclusions Increasing benefit of the location cue with increasing child age in the three-voice masker suggests maturation of spatially selective attention, but error patterns do not support this idea. Differences in performance in the location-unknown condition could play a role in the differential benefit of the location cue.


Perception ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 25 (12) ◽  
pp. 1401-1418 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jari Laarni ◽  
Mika Koski ◽  
Gōte Nyman

Although we can selectively attend to colour, preknowledge of the location of a target has been shown to facilitate visual selection more than preknowledge of the target colour. Here the effects of peripheral flash cues and central colour cues were compared in three experiments. A novel colour-cuing procedure was used in which the target location was designated in advance by colour. Since variations in stimulus eccentricity and density similarly affected performance in both conditions, the colour cues presumably also made it possible to direct attention quickly to the target location. Thus, the colour cues in this study were analogous to symbolic location cues, such as central digits. Moreover, even though peripheral colour information was provided in experiments 1 and 2 only 84 ms before stimulus array, ie at the same time as the onset cue was flashed on, the effect of colour cues was comparable to that of peripheral flashes. This is a surprising finding given previous data on the time to interpret symbolic location cues and to allocate attention to the target location.


2011 ◽  
Vol 105 (2) ◽  
pp. 827-833 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel W. Cheadle ◽  
Andrew Parton ◽  
Hermann J. Müller ◽  
Marius Usher

We recently reported evidence indicating that selective attention is deployed to a target location in a multi-object display, when the target event (a change of one of the objects) is preceded by subliminal flicker in the gamma range. However, concerns have been raised regarding the stimuli used in this study and the possible contribution of an artifactual cue: a “transition flash” between pretarget flicker offset and target onset. Here, we report a series of experiments investigating the existence and potential contribution to selective attention of this transition-flash cue under different presentation conditions. We find that, although the transition flash is a real phenomenon (detection rates ≃ 15% > chance), it cannot, on its own, explain the original effects of gamma flicker on the response time to target detection. Even after eliminating this flash, detection was significantly faster, or more accurate, for targets preceded (vs. not preceded) by flicker. This congruency effect (≈15 ms) demonstrates that gamma flicker on its own is sufficient to engage selective attention. This interpretation is further strengthened by a reevaluation of 1) experiment 7 reported by van Diepen and colleagues and 2) the validity effect experiment reported by Bauer and colleagues. Possible reasons for the discrepant results are also discussed.


1985 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 260-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee Ann Laraway

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there is a statistically significant difference between the auditory selective attention abilities of normal and cerebral-palsied individuals. Twenty-three cerebral-palsied and 23 normal subjects between the ages of 5 and 21 were asked to repeat a series of 30 items consisting of from 2 to 4 digits in the presence of intermittent white noise. Results of the study indicate that cerebral-palsied individuals perform significantly poorer than normal individuals when the stimulus is accompanied by noise. Noise was not a significant factor in the performance of the normal subjects regardless of age.


2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (9) ◽  
pp. 3036-3050
Author(s):  
Elma Blom ◽  
Tessel Boerma

Purpose Many children with developmental language disorder (DLD) have weaknesses in executive functioning (EF), specifically in tasks testing interference control and working memory. It is unknown how EF develops in children with DLD, if EF abilities are related to DLD severity and persistence, and if EF weaknesses expand to selective attention. This study aimed to address these gaps. Method Data from 78 children with DLD and 39 typically developing (TD) children were collected at three times with 1-year intervals. At Time 1, the children were 5 or 6 years old. Flanker, Dot Matrix, and Sky Search tasks tested interference control, visuospatial working memory, and selective attention, respectively. DLD severity was based on children's language ability. DLD persistence was based on stability of the DLD diagnosis. Results Performance on all tasks improved in both groups. TD children outperformed children with DLD on interference control. No differences were found for visuospatial working memory and selective attention. An interference control gap between the DLD and TD groups emerged between Time 1 and Time 2. Severity and persistence of DLD were related to interference control and working memory; the impact on working memory was stronger. Selective attention was unrelated to DLD severity and persistence. Conclusions Age and DLD severity and persistence determine whether or not children with DLD show EF weaknesses. Interference control is most clearly impaired in children with DLD who are 6 years and older. Visuospatial working memory is impaired in children with severe and persistent DLD. Selective attention is spared.


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 834-842
Author(s):  
Harini Vasudevan ◽  
Hari Prakash Palaniswamy ◽  
Ramaswamy Balakrishnan

Purpose The main purpose of the study is to explore the auditory selective attention abilities (using event-related potentials) and the neuronal oscillatory activity in the default mode network sites (using electroencephalogram [EEG]) in individuals with tinnitus. Method Auditory selective attention was measured using P300, and the resting state EEG was assessed using the default mode function analysis. Ten individuals with continuous and bothersome tinnitus along with 10 age- and gender-matched control participants underwent event-related potential testing and 5 min of EEG recording (at wakeful rest). Results Individuals with tinnitus were observed to have larger N1 and P3 amplitudes along with prolonged P3 latency. The default mode function analysis revealed no significant oscillatory differences between the groups. Conclusion The current study shows changes in both the early sensory and late cognitive components of auditory processing. The change in the P3 component is suggestive of selective auditory attention deficit, and the sensory component (N1) suggests an altered bottom-up processing in individuals with tinnitus.


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