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Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments
Published on: January 23, 2017
Depth cues do not underlie attentional modulations of the Stroop effect
1Institut für Psychologie I, Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany. prwuehr@phil.unierlange.de
Memory & Cognition
|October 27, 2005
Summary
The Stroop effect, often linked to reading, is influenced by object-based attention. This study confirms that attentional selection amplifies processing within attended objects, even without depth cues.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Visual Perception
Background:
- The Stroop effect, a measure of selective attention, is typically explained by the automaticity of word reading.
- Previous research suggested object-based attentional selection amplifies processing of attended object features.
Purpose of the Study:
- To differentiate between an object-based attentional mechanism and a depth-plane account of the Stroop effect.
- To validate Wühr and Waszak's (2003) findings using displays devoid of monocular depth cues.
Main Methods:
- Two experiments were conducted using visual displays without monocular depth cues.
- Participants named the color of target rectangles presented with congruent or incongruent word distractors within or outside the target object.
Main Results:
- Larger Stroop effects were observed for words within the relevant object compared to irrelevant objects or background.
- These findings replicated Wühr and Waszak's (2003) results, supporting the object-based attentional selection hypothesis.
Conclusions:
- The results support an object-based mechanism for attentional selection in visual processing.
- Attentional selection amplifies processing of all features within an attended object, irrespective of depth cues.
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