Individual Differences in Attentional Flexibility.
Abstract
This report describes a preliminary study that attempts to develop the concept of attentional flexibility. Flexibility refers to the rapidity with which set or attention can be switched from one signal requiring attention to another. If a trait exists, then people who can rapidly switch set on one task should be able to rapidly switch set in a different kind of setting. The existence of such a trait could ultimately be very useful as a predictor of performance on a variety of skilled tasks, and some evidence for that has been found by Kahneman, Gopher, and colleagues. We studied flexibility on four tasks: (1) The difficulty in dealing with an unexpected signal after just being primed for another; (2) The difficulty in dealing with a rarely occurring event that occurs in the context of much more frequent events; (3) The ability to prepare for signals in another category immediately after responding to a signal in a different category, even when the need for preparation is predictable; and (4) The ability to switch attention from one dichotic message to another. This preliminary study provides some promise for the concept of flexibility, so we are currently engaged in follow-up studies. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 15, 1978
- Accession Number
- ADA055927
Entities
People
- Steven W. Keele
- Suzanne M. De Lemos
- W. Trammell Neill
Organizations
- University of Oregon