Deck 5: Paying Attention

Question 1

Participants are instructed to fixate on a point on a computer screen but to attend to,and report on,a "+" sign that appears off to one side for 180 ms.After several trials,the fixation point is unexpectedly replaced by a new shape,but the participants do not notice this change.This is a study of

A)inattentional blindness.
B)neglect syndrome.
C)attentional apathy.
D)shadowing.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Participants are shown pictures of two alternating scenes that are separated by a brief blank interval.The scenes are identical except for one small detail.In this case,participants find it hard to detect the change.Which of the following statements is most likely to be true?

A)This effect occurs only when participants are unaware that there is a change in the scene.
B)A similar effect can also be found with movies and in actual live events (where participants fail to detect changes that have been made).
C)A similar effect can also be found with movies (where participants fail to detect changes that have been made)but not with actual live events.
D)Changes in the center of a scene often take longer to detect than changes in the periphery of a scene.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

In a variety of paradigms,priming the wrong detector leads to slower responding,compared to neutral priming.That is,getting prepared for one target seems to hinder performance for other targets.What does this finding reveal about selective attention?

A)Selective attention draws on a limited-capacity system.
B)Selective attention seems to have unlimited capacity.
C)Expectation-based priming is more effective than stimulus-based priming.
D)The cost of priming is inevitable.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Jillian is participating in an experiment in which she was asked to shadow a message presented to the left ear while simultaneously ignoring a message presented to the right ear.Jillian is LEAST likely to detect which of the following changes in the signals?

A)The right ear's message is initially presented in a high-pitched voice but is then spoken by a low-pitched voice.
B)The participant's name is mentioned three times at various points within the right ear's message.
C)Initially,the right ear's message contains a male voice reading a coherent passage,but this is then replaced by the same voice reading a sequence of random words.
D)The right ear's message is initially presented in a soft voice but is then spoken by a loud voice.

Question 5

A "late selection" view of attention suggests that

A)only the attended input is analyzed;the unattended input receives little analysis.
B)all inputs are processed to a reasonable degree;however,only the attended input reaches consciousness.
C)attention can switch back and forth between attended and unattended inputs.
D)analysis of an unattended input is greater than that of the attended input.

Question 6

In a study of spatial attention,participants are shown a neutral cue,a high-validity prime (correctly predicting the location of the target 80% of the time),or a misleading cue to prime the location of an upcoming target.Which of the following statements is true?

A)Response times to a neutral cue are faster than response times to a priming cue.
B)Response times to a misleading cue are faster than response times to a neutral cue.
C)There is no difference in response times between a neutral cue and a misleading cue.
D)Response times to a neutral cue are faster than response times to a misleading cue.

Question 7

In which of the following situations would we expect the fastest response time?

A)The stimulus being presented to the participant is identical in form to the stimulus used as the warning signal.
B)The stimulus being presented to the participant is markedly different from the stimulus used as the warning signal.
C)The stimulus being presented to the participant is the stimulus the participant was expecting.
D)The stimulus being presented to the participant is identical in form to the warning signal but is different from the stimulus the participant was expecting.

Question 8

In a study of visual selection,participants were shown a video of people throwing and catching a ball.Some of the people in the video were wearing white shirts and some were wearing black shirts.Participants were asked to attend only to the group of people wearing white shirts and count the number of times they threw the ball.In this study,participants

A)could not ignore the people wearing black.
B)reported the total number of times the ball changed hands regardless of whether it was thrown by a person wearing a white shirt or a person wearing a black shirt.
C)correctly reported the number of throws made by the people wearing black shirts 50% of the time.
D)easily completed the task,but in the process failed to notice some other peculiar events that occurred.

Question 9

Studies looking at electrical activity in the brain suggest that the processing steps for attended stimuli and unattended stimuli are

A)indistinguishable.
B)distinguishable for only 1 ms after stimulus presentation.
C)distinguishable as soon as 80 ms after stimulus presentation.
D)not distinguishable until at least 150 ms after stimulus presentation.

Question 10

In each trial of an experiment,participants see a warning signal and then,a half-second later,see a pair of letters.The participants press one button if the letters are the same (e.g. ,W W)and a different button if the letters are different (e.g. ,P X).In 80% of the trials,the warning signal is identical to the letters that will be shown on that trial.Here are the warning signals and the test stimuli presented on Trial 97 of the procedure:
Group 1: warning signal = L;test pair = L L
Group 2: warning signal = U;test pair = L L
Group 3: warning signal = +;test pair = L L
In this setup we should expect the fastest responses from

A)Group 3 and the slowest responses from Group 2.
B)Group 1 and the slowest responses from Group 3.
C)Group 1 and the slowest responses from Group 2.
D)Group 1 and no difference between Groups 2 and 3.

Question 11

Attention seems to be necessary for

A)eye movements.
B)perceptual priming.
C)conscious perception.
D)change blindness.

Question 12

In dichotic listening experiments,some aspects of the unattended message seem to leak through and are heard despite the participant's intention to ignore the message.Which of the following statements reflects what is LEAST likely to leak through?

A)material that is easily distinguishable from the attended message in its semantic content
B)mention of the participant's name
C)mention of a topic of personal importance to the participant
D)mention of a movie that the participant recently watched

Question 13

In dichotic listening tasks,most participants are able to

A)tell if the unattended channel contained a coherent message or just random words.
B)identify physical attributes of the message on the unattended channel.
C)concentrate effectively on the attended channel,so they end up detecting nothing on the unattended channel.
D)maintain their focus on the attended channel only with considerable difficulty and frequent slips.

Question 14

Different forms of priming can be distinguished in several ways.For example,the effects of ________ priming can be observed almost immediately after the relevant cue is provided;in contrast,the effects of ________ priming require a half-second or so to appear after the relevant cue.

A)concept-driven;data-driven
B)stimulus-based;expectation-based
C)expectation-based;repetition
D)semantic;repetition

Question 15

Recordings from neurons in area V4 of the visual cortex show that the neurons are

A)equally responsive to both attended and unattended stimuli.
B)more responsive to the physical attributes of unattended stimuli than attended stimuli.
C)used primarily in expectation-based priming.
D)more responsive to attended inputs than unattended inputs.

Question 16

Participants are shown a pair of similar pictures separated by a blank interval.The pictures are identical except for a single aspect (e.g. ,a man is wearing a hat in one scene but not in the other).In these kinds of tasks,participants often find it hard to detect the change.This phenomenon is known as

A)scene identification.
B)change perception.
C)change blindness.
D)change unawareness.

Question 17

Tasks involving dichotic listening are tasks in which

A)two different visual stimuli are presented.
B)two different auditory messages are presented,one to each ear.
C)participants must identify subthreshold sounds.
D)participants must dichotomize sounds into distinct categories.

Question 18

A participant who has just participated in an experiment involving dichotic listening is LEAST likely to remember

A)whether input in the unattended channel was spoken by a male or a female.
B)whether the unattended channel contained nonspeech noises or speech.
C)how loud the signal of the attended channel was.
D)the meaning of the words presented on the unattended channel.

Question 19

Change blindness demonstrates that

A)perception of an object triggers attention to that object.
B)attention cannot be divided between different objects within a scene.
C)changes in a scene are easily detected.
D)people routinely fail to see things directly in front of their eyes.

Question 20

When listening to two streams of conversation,the task of shadowing involves

A)immediately repeating,word for word,the contents of one of the messages.
B)drawing the mirror image of a simple sketch.
C)copying the movements of a target individual.
D)repeating back,from memory,a message heard minutes earlier.

Question 21

Which of the following systems is responsible for achieving and maintaining an alert state in the brain?

A)orienting
B)alerting
C)executive
D)vigilant

Question 22

The idea of a "cognitive budget" is used several times in this chapter.Which of the following statements is NOT true of the "cognitive budget"?

A)One can perform multiple tasks only if the sum of the tasks' demands does not exceed the budget.
B)The budget can increase markedly through practice.
C)Tasks may require fewer resources after practice.
D)The budget contains task-specific and task-general resources.

Question 23

A patient has suffered brain damage and,as a result,now seems to ignore all information on the left side of her world.If shown words,she reads only the right half of the word;if asked to copy a picture,she copies only the right half.This patient seems to be suffering from

A)a hemispherectomy.
B)right hemiblindness.
C)unilateral neglect syndrome.
D)parietal syndrome.

Question 24

The existence of task-general resources is indicated by the fact that

A)similar tasks will not interfere with each other.
B)if a task has been heavily practiced,it is more likely to cause interference with other tasks.
C)some brain lesions disrupt all tasks requiring attention.
D)interference between two tasks can sometimes be observed even if the two tasks have few elements in common.

Question 25

If a participant is asked to perform two activities at the same time,performance will be improved if

A)the two activities are plainly different from each other,drawing on different task-specific resources.
B)the two activities are partially related,so that resource use can be coordinated.
C)both activities require large amounts of task-general resources.
D)neither activity involves verbal processing.

Question 26

Some researchers have compared visual attention to a searchlight beam sweeping across the visual field.Which of the following claims about this beam is NOT currently supported by evidence?

A)Visual acuity is highest for objects appearing "within" the "beam."
B)Movements of attention can be distinguished from movements of the eye.
C)The beam of visual attention can be adjusted by the participant,so that it is sometimes wide and sometimes narrow.
D)Stimuli inside the beam of visual attention are primed,promoting their perception.

Question 27

The frontal lobe has many functions.Which of the following is LEAST strongly associated with the frontal lobe?

A)orienting
B)alerting
C)executive control
D)shape processing

Question 28

Patients with unilateral neglect ignore one side of their visual field.This problem illustrates the importance of

A)object-based attention.
B)space-based attention.
C)memory for objects.
D)paying attention to objects.

Question 29

An experienced driver can drive while holding a relatively complex conversation.This combination of activities is difficult,however,for a novice driver.Which of the following explanations most likely explains the difference?

A)The two activities are very different,so the task combination creates no problems with channel segregation.
B)Practicing a task leads to a decline in the resource demands for that task.
C)The two activities are very different,so they rely on different sets of task-specific resources.
D)Practicing the tasks improves confidence in the task.

Question 30

Participants are asked to listen to a tape-recorded message and to shadow the message as they hear it.Which of the following tasks will be easiest to combine with this shadowing task?

A)viewing a series of printed words,followed by a test measuring memory for the words
B)simultaneously hearing a tape-recorded message,followed by a test measuring memory for the gist of the second message
C)simultaneously hearing a tape-recorded list of words,followed by a test measuring memory for the word list
D)viewing a series of pictures,followed by a test measuring memory for the pictures

Question 31

All of the following statements are true of patients with unilateral neglect syndrome EXCEPT

A)In general,they seem to ignore half of the world.
B)When their attention is directed toward a particular object,it often stays with that object.
C)If an object previously attended to is moved into the ignored half of the world,patients will start to ignore the object.
D)When asked to cross out all the letter E's on a page,patients with damage to the right parietal lobe will cross out only the E's on the right side of the page.

Question 32

Stroop interference demonstrates that

A)word reading is automatized.
B)the identification of a stimulus requires few resources.
C)practice with a color-naming task leads to automaticity.
D)automatic tasks do not exist.

Question 33

Executive control is likely engaged in all of the following situations EXCEPT when a person

A)takes steps to avoid a habitual response.
B)is working on "auto-pilot."
C)needs to shift strategy,because the current efforts aren't working as hoped.
D)chooses to focus on a specific task and avoid distractions.

Question 34

The evidence both from unilateral neglect patients and from patients with normal attentional abilities suggests that

A)attention is space-based,not object-based.
B)attention is object-based,not space-based.
C)both space- and object-based attention are important in attention.
D)attention becomes space-based only in cases of brain damage.

Question 35

Movements of attention are

A)always associated with movement of the eyes.
B)rarely associated with movement of the eyes.
C)dependent on eye movements.
D)faster than eye movements.

Question 36

Sometimes we can complete competing tasks at the same time,but sometimes we cannot because the tasks interfere with each other.Which combination of tasks is likely to cause the LEAST amount of interference?

A)tasks that require the same task-specific resources
B)tasks that require general resources
C)a task that requires general resources and one that requires task-specific resources
D)two tasks that require different task-specific resources

Question 37

Priming based on specific expectations about the identity of the upcoming stimulus produces

A)no benefit for processing if the expectations are correct but slows processing if the expectations are incorrect.
B)a benefit for processing if the expectations are correct but slows processing if the expectations are incorrect.
C)a benefit for processing if the expectations are correct but has no effect on processing if the expectations are incorrect.
D)the same benefit as stimulus-based repetition priming.

Question 38

Which of the following statements is NOT true of executive control?

A)It is used to keep current goals active.
B)It inhibits distracting thoughts.
C)It seems to rely on the prefrontal cortex.
D)It is needed for habitual responding but not for goal-directed behaviors.

Question 39

The data from patients with brain damage to circuits controlling attention indicate that

A)the brain mechanisms controlling attention are inseparable from the brain mechanisms directly involved in perception.
B)multiple brain mechanisms are responsible for the control of attention.
C)a single mechanism governs the ability to disengage attention from its current focus and the ability to lock into a new attention focus.
D)the mechanisms controlling attention are located primarily in subcortical areas and the midbrain.

Question 40

Posner,Snyder,and Davidson (1980)examined spatial attention using arrows as primes.In most of the trials the arrow pointed to the area where the stimulus would appear a moment later,but 20% of the time it did not.They compared reaction times (RTs)for trials when the cue correctly pointed to the stimulus location,for trials when the arrow pointed toward an incorrect position,and for trials with a neutral cue (no arrow).Which of the following statements was NOT supported by their findings?

A)RTs were slower when the arrow pointed toward an incorrect location.
B)Spatial attention is limited in capacity.
C)We can attend to two different locations without a reduction in performance.
D)RTs were faster for responses for arrows pointing correctly compared to the neutral condition.

Question 41

Describe the dichotic listening procedure and two studies that have manipulated the basic paradigm.What does the dichotic listening evidence tell us about the nature of attention?

Question 42

Compare and contrast inattentional blindness and change blindness.Provide a real-life example of each process.

Question 43

Sadiq has a significantly difficult time sustaining attention and completing projects that require sustained effort.These experiences are likely associated with functioning of what system?

A)alerting
B)orienting
C)executive
D)dividing

Question 44

Lucas suffered a blow to his right parietal lobe and now suffers from unilateral neglect.

Question 45

What does it mean to say that attention is an "achievement" rather than a specific mechanism?

Question 46

Attention is best characterized as a(n)

A)specific brain process,dependent on the parietal lobe.
B)single mechanism that functions differently in different circumstances.
C)capacity that only comes into being through practice.
D)achievement that depends on many different processes.

Question 47

Ada recently joined a running club and completed her first 5-mile run.After the run,she has no recall of what she read in her cognition textbook earlier because she is thinking about how sore her legs are.This is a real-world example of

A)inhibited processing of distractors.
B)object-based attentional failure.
C)inattentional blindness.
D)spatial attention failure.

Question 48

You have undoubtedly heard the phrase "practice makes perfect." Argue for or against this adage by discussing the role that attention plays in behavior,and how that could be modified (or not)via practice.

Question 49

Which of the following statements is FALSE about automatic tasks?

A)They do not require many attentional resources.
B)They can usually be combined with other tasks.
C)They can act as mental reflexes.
D)They require executive control.

Question 50

A primary difference between early and late selection hypotheses is that in the early selection models,selection of stimuli

A)is based on modality.
B)occurs just before the stimuli reach consciousness.
C)is indiscriminate.
D)happens soon after the stimuli arrive.

Question 51

Explain how stimulus-driven and expectation-driven processing contribute to the effect that priming has on attention.

Question 52

Which symptom associated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)reflects problems with orienting systems?

A)failing to finish tasks
B)avoiding tasks that require sustained effort
C)failing to pay close attention
D)interrupting others during conversation

Question 53

Landry is discussing summer plans with a friend at a busy restaurant.He suddenly notices that someone at a nearby table has mentioned his name,and he shifts his attention to the conversation at that other table.Which of the following is the term often used to describe this experience?

A)early selection hypothesis
B)cocktail party effect
C)attention as a spotlight
D)failure of the orienting system

Question 54

A participant is shown a series of stimuli and is asked to name the color of the ink in which the stimuli are printed.The eighth stimulus happens to be printed in green ink.We should expect a relatively slow response if the stimulus happens to be

A)a series of green X 's.
B)the word "RED" printed in green.
C)the participant's name printed in green.
D)the word "GREEN" printed in green.

Question 55

Your friend says that she can drive and text on her cell phone at the same time because she has a lot of practice doing both things.Use your knowledge of attention to convince her (using the appropriate psychological terms and evidence)that she should not text and drive at the same time.

Question 56

Describe the Posner and Snyder (1975)experiment.What does it tell us about the role that priming plays in attention? What are the costs and benefits of such priming?

Question 57

Imagine you are studying for an upcoming final exam.You take pride,though,in the fact that you always try to do two things at once.Provide one example of a task that you probably could do successfully while studying and one you could not.Explain your choice of examples.

Question 58

Sometimes someone notices and perceives an input even though the input is part of a stream of information that the person has been,up to that point,successfully ignoring.A plausible explanation for this is that

A)the input the person noticed happens to be a stimulus he or she encounters frequently,and so the relevant detectors were already well primed.
B)the input the person noticed did not require any task-general resources.
C)executive control allows people to process both the attended and the unattended input.
D)the person seems to suffer from an attention disorder.

Question 59

Is attention space-based or object-based? Include evidence from patients with unilateral neglect in your answer.

Question 60

All of the following statements regarding stimulus- and expectation-based priming are true EXCEPT

A)Stimulus-based priming of one detector has little or no impact on other detectors.
B)Stimulus- and expectation-based priming seem to be associated with virtually identical brain mechanisms.
C)Expectation-based priming of one detector seems to decrease the activation level of other detectors.
D)Stimulus-based priming is in place almost immediately after the priming stimulus arrives;expectation-based priming is in place only after a brief delay.