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Linked Databases

Britannica Schools
Britannica School covers the core subject areas of English, Maths, Science and History. Interactive lessons, activities, games, stories, worksheets, manipulatives, study guides and research tools.
Psychological & Behavioural Sciences
This comprehensive resource is an essential tool for psychologists, counselors, researchers and students, providing extensive full-text coverage for a broad range of subjects in the fields of psychology, behavioral sciences and related disciplines.

Introduction

At the highest level of consciousness we are totally aware and focused on what we have selected to pay attention to. This might be lining up to kick a goal or studying for an exam. In this state we are virtually oblivious to other things going on around us. As we move down the consciousness continuum, we find divided attention. Much of the time, our attention is not fully focused on one things and we divide our attention between two sources of information. This lets us do two things at the same time. How successfully we do this depend on how much conscious effort is required for each of the tasks. (Nelson, 2016)

This research guide has been developed for a Year 11 investigation into 'comparing selected and divided attention'.

The Attention Experiment

Simons, J. (2010, April 28). The monkey business illusion [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGQmdoK_ZfY

Attention Overview

Cherry, K. (2016, January 15). What is attention. Retrieved from http://psychology.about.com/od/cognitivepsychology/f/attention.htm
Attention is a concept studied in cognitive psychology that refers to how we actively process specific information in our environment. As you are reading this, there are numerous sights, sounds and sensations going on around you – the pressure of your feet against the floor, the sight of the street out of a nearby window, the soft warmth of your shirt, the memory of a conversation you had earlier with a friend.
Attention. (2016). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from http://school.eb.com.au.db.plcscotch.wa.edu.au/levels/high/article/109387
Attention is awareness of the here and now in a focal and perceptive way. For early psychologists, such as Edward Bradford Titchener, attention determined the content of consciousness and influenced the quality of conscious experience. In subsequent years less emphasis was placed on the subjective element of consciousness and more on the behaviour patterns by which attention could be recognized in others.
Freidrich, F. (2016). Attention. Retrieved from http://nobaproject.com/modules/attention
We use the term “attention“ all the time, but what processes or abilities does that concept really refer to? This module will focus on how attention allows us to select certain parts of our environment and ignore other parts, and what happens to the ignored information.

Selective and Divided Attention

KhanAcademy. (2013, September 17). Divided attention, selective attention, inattentional blindness, & change blindness. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4JBqLoY3tY

Key Terms

Ethical Research

LibGuides. (n.d.). Discuss ethical considerations related to research studies at the biological level of analysis. Retrieved from http://ibguides.com/psychology/notes/discuss-ethical-considerations-related-to-research-studies-at-the-biological-level-of-an
This Psychology IB LibGuide discusses ethical consideration for research experiments.

Broadbent

(Whyte, n.d.)

Tweney, R. (2008). Eric Broadbent. Retrieved from http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2830905525.html
Broadbent, often considered one of the founders of cognitive psychology, was best known for his experimental and theoretical work on attention and short-term memory. His “filter theory” of attention accounted for a wide range of phenomena, particularly in the auditory domain, and served to reawaken interest in the relation between attention and perception. His most influential work, Perception and Communication (1958), also served as a model of scientific method for the new orientation in psychology.

BBC Radio 4. (2012, April 30). Donald Broadbent and the Cocktail Party. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01gvkw7
Claudia Hammond examines the legacy of Donald Broadbent the psychologist who launched the cognitive revolution.