The Limits of Attentional Blink

• Main Authors: Cheng-Fan Kao, 高正芬
• Other Authors: 謝淑蘭
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2008
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/30342693767293809369

碩士 === 國立中正大學 === 心理學所 === 97 === In a rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) paradigm, it is often found that if a second target appears within 100~500ms of a correctly identified first target, the accuracy on the second target is decreased (known as “attentional blink”). A number of theories have been proposed and most of them assume resource limitation is the primary cause for the attentional blink. The present study argues against this assumption by showing that the attentional blink on the second target is not time-locked to the completion of a single item of the first target, but instead, is time-locked to the completion of a set of multiple items of the first target (Experiment 1). The second experiment of the present study further shows that such a target task-set can be even generalized to contain more than one stimulus category. Therefore, the current findings are difficult to be reconciled with the resource limitation theory. The results of the present study also provide important information about how one’s intentional concept of the task-set plays a critical role in determining the limits of attention.