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Updated: Oct 19, 2025
09:37
Measurement of Neurophysiological Signals of Ignoring and Attending Processes in Attention Control
Published on: July 5, 2015
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How top-down and bottom-up attention modulate risky choice.
Yonatan Vanunu1, Jared M Hotaling2,3, Mike E Le Pelley2
1School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia; yyv1984@gmail.com.
Summary
Attention in risky choice is influenced by both stimulus properties and goals. While perceptual salience guides initial attention, the perceived value ultimately drives decision-making in gambles.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Decision Science
Background:
- Attention distribution in decision-making is governed by bottom-up (stimulus-driven) and top-down (goal-driven) processes.
- Understanding these processes is crucial for explaining choices under risk.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how stimulus-driven and goal-driven attention influence choices in risky scenarios.
- To determine the relative impact of perceptual salience versus perceived value on decision-making.
Main Methods:
- Three experiments involving participants choosing between certain payoffs and gambles with varying numerical arrays.
- Manipulation of task framing (goal-driven) and font size (stimulus-driven) as independent variables.
- Utilized eye-tracking and computational modeling to analyze attention and choice behavior.
Main Results:
- Payoffs with higher values and larger font sizes significantly impacted choice, indicating both goal-driven and stimulus-driven effects.
- A distractor stimulus, despite attracting attention, did not influence option selection.
- Computational modeling supported the finding that perceived value is key to intentional control.
Conclusions:
- Perceptual salience can elicit bottom-up attentional capture and overt selection.
- The perceived value of information is the primary factor in goal-driven control over risky choices.
- Both stimulus-driven and goal-driven factors interact to shape attention and decision-making under risk.
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