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ERIC Number: EJ734759
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2005-Aug
Pages: 25
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0096-1523
EISSN: N/A
Do Multielement Visual Tracking and Visual Search Draw Continuously on the Same Visual Attention Resources?
Alvarez, George A.; Horowitz, Todd S.; Arsenio, Helga C.; DiMase, Jennifer S.; Wolfe, Jeremy M.
Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, v31 n4 p643-667 Aug 2005
Multielement visual tracking and visual search are 2 tasks that are held to require visual-spatial attention. The authors used the attentional operating characteristic (AOC) method to determine whether both tasks draw continuously on the same attentional resource (i.e., whether the 2 tasks are mutually exclusive). The authors found that observers can search and track within the same trial significantly better than would be predicted if the 2 tasks were mutually exclusive. In fact, the AOC for tracking and search is similar to that for tracking and auditory monitoring. The results of additional experiments support an attention-switching account for this high level of dual-task performance in which a single attentional resource is efficiently switched between the tracking and search. The results provide important constraints for architectures of visual selective attention and the mechanisms of multielement tracking.
American Psychological Association. Journals Department, 750 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242. Tel: 800-374-2721; Tel: 202-336-5510; Fax: 202-336-5502; e-mail: order@apa.org; Web site: http://www.apa.org/publications.
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A