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Related Experiment Video

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Aversive Associative Learning and Memory Formation by Pairing Two Chemicals in Caenorhabditis elegans

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The blocking effect in associative learning involves learned biases in rapid attentional capture.

David Luque^1,2, Miguel A Vadillo^3,4, María J Gutiérrez-Cobo²

¹1 School of Psychology, UNSW Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology (2006)

|November 23, 2016

Summary

Blocking occurs when learning is hindered by a previously learned cue. This study shows that reduced attention to the blocked stimulus, or "attentional blocking," is key to this learning phenomenon.

Keywords:

Associative learning attention blocking dot probe memory

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Area of Science:

Cognitive Psychology
Neuroscience
Learning Sciences

Background:

Blocking is a phenomenon in associative learning where prior learning inhibits new associations.
Attentional models propose blocking results from reduced attention to the inhibited cue.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the role of attention in the blocking effect.
To determine if attentional biases mediate associative learning and memory encoding.

Main Methods:

Three experiments utilized a blocking procedure in an associative learning task.
Attention was measured using an adapted dot probe task.
Participants made predictive-value judgments to assess associative learning.

Main Results:

Evidence of reduced attention to blocked stimuli, termed "attentional blocking," was found.
Attentional bias correlated with the magnitude of associative blocking.
Learning about stimulus predictiveness influenced memory for stimulus-related episodes.

Conclusions:

Learned attentional biases play a central role in the blocking effect.
Attentional mechanisms are crucial for the encoding of new memories during associative learning.