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Measurement of Neurophysiological Signals of Ignoring and Attending Processes in Attention Control
Published on: July 5, 2015
Individual differences in susceptibility to inattentional blindness
Janelle K Seegmiller1, Jason M Watson, David L Strayer
1Department of Psychology, University of Utah, 380 S. 1530 E. Room 502, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA. janelle.seegmiller@psych.utah.edu
Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition
|February 9, 2011
Summary
Individual differences in attentional control, measured by working memory capacity, influence susceptibility to inattentional blindness. Higher working memory capacity correlates with a greater likelihood of noticing unexpected stimuli, like a gorilla, during focused tasks.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Inattentional blindness is a common phenomenon where individuals fail to perceive visible objects when attention is engaged elsewhere.
- While prevalent, individual differences in susceptibility to inattentional blindness are not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether individual differences in attentional control, specifically working memory capacity, predict susceptibility to inattentional blindness.
- To explore the relationship between working memory capacity and the ability to detect unexpected stimuli.
Main Methods:
- Participants engaged in a modified Simons & Chabris inattentional blindness task, counting basketball passes.
- Working memory capacity was assessed, and participants reported whether they saw an unexpected stimulus (a gorilla).
- Performance accuracy on the primary task was used to segment data for analysis.
Main Results:
- Overall, 58% of participants noticed the unexpected gorilla.
- Among those accurate in their pass counts, individuals with higher working memory capacity were significantly more likely to report seeing the gorilla (67%) compared to those with lower capacity (36%).
Conclusions:
- Variability in attentional control, as indicated by working memory capacity, appears to modulate susceptibility to inattentional blindness.
- Working memory capacity may be a key factor influencing an individual's ability to overcome attentional capture and detect salient, unexpected events.
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