Models of Visual Attention

Humans have an ability to not attend to all the features of the environment. This offers a functional advantage. There is a focus as to how we direct our attention to specific details.

• An example of a location based model is the Spotlight & Zoom-Lens model
• Alternately there is an Object Based model

Spotlight of Visual attention

• This says that everything within a small region of visual field can be seen clearly. It is more difficult to see anything that doesn't fall within that beam.
• The information that is within the spotlight is processed more clearly than anything outside.
• Precueing Procedure - Posner et al. (1980). In this experiment, participants had to identify when a light appears. In the centre of the row, a precue was given to direct attention to the right or left. When a valid cue was given, there were faster reaction times than when an invalid cue was given. This supports the model of location based attention as the individuals spotlight of visual attention is diverted by the precue, making the light more easy to identify when it is within that visual field, or, more difficult to identify if it is outside the spotlight.

Zoom Lens Model

• This is an adaptation of the spotlight model.
• It says that attention is directed to a particular region of visual field.
• The area however ca be increased or decreased depending on the requirements.
• LaBerge (1983): In this experiment, participants were presented with 5 letter words. There were 2 conditions. In one condition, a probe would appear in place of a letter, in the other condition however, the probe would appear in place of a word. The results showed that the reaction time was faster when the participants had a narrower attentional beam, ie. in the first condition.
• There is less evidence for the zoom-lens than for the spotlight model, as we can still process unattended visual stimuli.