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8.3.5: Outside Resources

  • Page ID
    225596
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    Video: Here's a wild example of how much we fail to notice when our attention is captured by one element of a scene.

    Video: Try this test to see how well you can focus on a task in the face of a lot of distraction.

    Discussion Questions

    1. Discuss the implications of the different models of selective attention for everyday life. For instance, what advantages and disadvantages would be associated with being able to filter out all unwanted information at a very early stage in processing? What are the implications of processing all ignored information fully, even if you aren't consciously aware of that information?
    2. Think of examples of when you feel you can successfully multitask and when you can’t. Discuss what aspects of the tasks or the situation seem to influence divided attention performance. How accurate do you think you are in judging your own multitasking ability?
    3. What are the public policy implications of current evidence of inattentional blindness as a result of distracted driving? Should this evidence influence traffic safety laws? What additional studies of distracted driving would you propose?

    Attention by Frances Friedrich is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available in our Licensing Agreement.


    This page titled 8.3.5: Outside Resources is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Michael Miguel.