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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 31, 2025

A Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate Interference in Working Memory by Distractions and Interruptions

A Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate Interference in Working Memory by Distractions and Interruptions

Published on: July 16, 2015

Difficulty suppressing visual distraction while dual tasking.

John J McDonald¹, John M Gaspar², Hayley E P Lagroix²

¹Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6, Canada. jmcd@sfu.ca.

Psychonomic Bulletin & Review

|August 24, 2022

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

The attentional blink (AB) impairs processing of a second target. This study shows that during the AB, the ability to suppress distractors is severely compromised, even more than target processing itself.

Keywords:

Attentional blink Distraction Distractor Positivity (PD)Dual tasking Visual search

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Last Updated: Aug 31, 2025

A Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate Interference in Working Memory by Distractions and Interruptions

A Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate Interference in Working Memory by Distractions and Interruptions

Published on: July 16, 2015

A Dual Task Procedure Combined with Rapid Serial Visual Presentation to Test Attentional Blink for Nontargets

A Dual Task Procedure Combined with Rapid Serial Visual Presentation to Test Attentional Blink for Nontargets

Published on: December 5, 2014

Using Rapid Serial Visual Presentation to Measure Set-Specific Capture, a Consequence of Distraction While Multitasking

Using Rapid Serial Visual Presentation to Measure Set-Specific Capture, a Consequence of Distraction While Multitasking

Published on: August 29, 2018

Area of Science:

Cognitive Neuroscience
Experimental Psychology

Background:

Dual-tasking reveals limitations in human attention.
The attentional blink (AB) impairs identification of a second target (T2) following a first target (T1).
Existing theories do not fully explain how T1 processing affects distractor suppression during T2 processing.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the impact of the attentional blink on the ability to suppress salient distractors.
To differentiate the effects of the AB on target processing versus distractor processing.

Main Methods:

Utilized event-related potentials (ERPs) to measure brain activity related to target and distractor processing.
Measured the P_D component associated with distractor suppression and the N2pc component associated with target processing.
Presented participants with rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) streams containing targets and distractors.

Main Results:

Healthy young adults showed impaired distractor suppression (reduced P_D) during the attentional blink.
This distractor suppression deficit was more severe than the deficit in target processing (delayed N2pc).
The P_D component was statistically absent during the AB, indicating a failure of inhibitory control.

Conclusions:

Inhibitory control mechanisms for ignoring distractors are unavailable during the processing of an earlier target.
The attentional blink significantly impairs the ability to disengage from processing a prior target to suppress concurrent distractors.