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Updated: Feb 12, 2026
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Measurement of Neurophysiological Signals of Ignoring and Attending Processes in Attention Control
Published on: July 5, 2015
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Changes in alpha activity reveal that social opinion modulates attention allocation during face processing.
Evelien Heyselaar1, Ali Mazaheri2, Peter Hagoort3
1Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
Neuroimage
|March 27, 2018
Summary
Social presence and opinions influence attention. Prior rapport with a virtual avatar increased attentional allocation, while average ratings maximized attention, showing social context impacts cognitive resources.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Virtual Reality Studies
- Social Psychology
Background:
- Human performance is altered by the presence of others.
- Interpersonal evaluations and prior interactions shape social cognition.
- Virtual reality (VR) offers a controlled environment to study social interactions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how prior interactions and evaluations of a virtual avatar influence attentional allocation.
- To examine the neural correlates of attention towards avatars using electroencephalography (EEG).
- To understand the role of alpha activity in modulating attention in social contexts.
Main Methods:
- Electroencephalography (EEG) was used to record brain activity.
- Participants interacted with and rated virtual avatars in a VR environment.
- Changes in alpha activity were analyzed as an index of attentional allocation.
Main Results:
- Greater alpha suppression was observed when an avatar's face appeared after a rapport-building interaction, indicating increased attention.
- Attentional allocation showed a U-shaped response to evaluative ratings, with the most attention directed towards avatars rated as average.
- These findings highlight the modulation of attentional resources by social factors.
Conclusions:
- Attentional allocation is a key mechanism underlying behavioral changes in social presence.
- The degree of attention paid to others is significantly influenced by our prior experiences and opinions of them.
- This research provides insights into the neural basis of social attention in virtual environments.
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