Abstract

SILVA, Flávia Cristina da et al. Effects of predictability control and the use of symbolic central cues in temporal orienting of attention. Psicol. teor. prat. [online]. 2011, vol.13, n.3, pp. 26-40. ISSN 1516-3687.

All the time the environment presents stimuli of different types and degrees of relevance that compete for the attention of the organism and, when selected, they take priority for being processed. This research is composed of three experiments designed to analyze the temporal dynamics of attention orienting. They deepen the knowledge about the effects of predictability control and the use of central symbolic cues in temporal orienting of attention. In each experiment the participant had to sit in front of a monitor plugged to a computer that generates stimuli and registers manual reaction time (RT) to visual targets. As a result we observed a temporal direction of attention, either due to the control of predictability or through central symbolic cues. Therefore we can say that the temporal probability of stimuli occurrence has allowed a preparation of the individual to respond. This suggests that there was a previous allocation of attentional resources to time-determined intervals which generated lower RTs.

Keywords : attention; time; reaction time; predictability; temporal orienting of attention.

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