Prolonged disengagement from distractors near the hands
Because items near our hands are often more important than items far from our hands, the brain processes visual items near our hands differently than items far from our hands. Multiple experiments have attributed this processing difference to spatial attention, but the exact mechanism behind how spa...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2013-08-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00533/full |
| _version_ | 1818512533005271040 |
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| author | Daniel B Vatterott Shaun P Vecera |
| author_facet | Daniel B Vatterott Shaun P Vecera |
| author_sort | Daniel B Vatterott |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Because items near our hands are often more important than items far from our hands, the brain processes visual items near our hands differently than items far from our hands. Multiple experiments have attributed this processing difference to spatial attention, but the exact mechanism behind how spatial attention near our hands changes is still under investigation. The current experiments sought to differentiate between two of the proposed mechanisms: a prioritization of the space near the hands and a prolonged disengagement of spatial attention near the hands. To differentiate between these two accounts, we used the additional singleton paradigm in which observers searched for a shape singleton among homogenously shaped distractors. On half the trials, one of the distractors was a different color. Both the prioritization and disengagement accounts predict differently colored distractors near the hands will slow target responses more than differently colored distractors far from the hands, but the prioritization account also predicts faster responses to targets near the hands than far from the hands. The disengagement account does not make this prediction, because attention does not need to be disengaged when the target appears near the hand. We found support for the disengagement account: Salient distractors near the hands slowed responses more than those far from the hands, yet observers did not respond faster to targets near the hands. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T23:48:12Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6cee211b1dd4421e82eefd781623fe95 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T23:48:12Z |
| publishDate | 2013-08-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-6cee211b1dd4421e82eefd781623fe952022-12-22T01:28:52ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782013-08-01410.3389/fpsyg.2013.0053359679Prolonged disengagement from distractors near the handsDaniel B Vatterott0Shaun P Vecera1University of IowaUniversity of IowaBecause items near our hands are often more important than items far from our hands, the brain processes visual items near our hands differently than items far from our hands. Multiple experiments have attributed this processing difference to spatial attention, but the exact mechanism behind how spatial attention near our hands changes is still under investigation. The current experiments sought to differentiate between two of the proposed mechanisms: a prioritization of the space near the hands and a prolonged disengagement of spatial attention near the hands. To differentiate between these two accounts, we used the additional singleton paradigm in which observers searched for a shape singleton among homogenously shaped distractors. On half the trials, one of the distractors was a different color. Both the prioritization and disengagement accounts predict differently colored distractors near the hands will slow target responses more than differently colored distractors far from the hands, but the prioritization account also predicts faster responses to targets near the hands than far from the hands. The disengagement account does not make this prediction, because attention does not need to be disengaged when the target appears near the hand. We found support for the disengagement account: Salient distractors near the hands slowed responses more than those far from the hands, yet observers did not respond faster to targets near the hands.http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00533/fullvisual attentionattentional controlattentional capturevisual processing near handshand position |
| spellingShingle | Daniel B Vatterott Shaun P Vecera Prolonged disengagement from distractors near the hands Frontiers in Psychology visual attention attentional control attentional capture visual processing near hands hand position |
| title | Prolonged disengagement from distractors near the hands |
| title_full | Prolonged disengagement from distractors near the hands |
| title_fullStr | Prolonged disengagement from distractors near the hands |
| title_full_unstemmed | Prolonged disengagement from distractors near the hands |
| title_short | Prolonged disengagement from distractors near the hands |
| title_sort | prolonged disengagement from distractors near the hands |
| topic | visual attention attentional control attentional capture visual processing near hands hand position |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00533/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT danielbvatterott prolongeddisengagementfromdistractorsnearthehands AT shaunpvecera prolongeddisengagementfromdistractorsnearthehands |