Exploring auditory selective attention shifts in virtual reality: An approach with matrix sentences

This study explores the voluntary switching of auditory selective attention using more natural stimuli and complex acoustic conditions. Building on previous categorization tasks with single-word stimuli, we introduce unpredictable matrix sentences in German to simulate more realistic auditory environments. While the overall results were similar to previous versions, no strong effect of reorienting the auditory attention was found. Interaction effects in error rates still suggest that switching auditory attention is more demanding than remaining focused on the same target. The results further show a benefit in reaction of preparing attention, since reaction times were highest for target words at the beginning of the sentence and decreased for later target onsets. Findings further suggest an opposite trend in error rates, where target words in the beginning yield fewer errors than target words in the middle or end of a sentence in switch trials (8.9% vs 15.7% vs 14.7%), especially when the distractor is played later than the target. Taken together, this approach offers a paradigm for investigating auditory attention in more complex acoustic scenarios, advancing research on auditory perception in dynamic room acoustic environments.