选择性注意在人工语法学习中的作用——回应Eitam，Schul和Hassin(2009)中的两点疑问

从语法规则复杂性（复杂语法vs.简单语法）的角度考察选择性注意在人工语法学习中的必要性,并且比较两种非法序列下的成绩差异来检验被选择忽视的语法规则是否能被习得却未能在测验阶段体现出来。结果表明纵使降低被选择注意的语法的复杂性,被忽视的语法也未被成功习得,只有被选择注意的语法才能被习得;两种非法序列下的正确率无显著差异,即非法序列b所遵循的被忽略的语法未能在分类判断中起作用。选择性注意是语法规则被习得的关键。     

内源性空间注意对声音诱发闪光错觉的影响

采用经典的声音诱发闪光错觉范式,通过操纵集中和分散的空间注意的方式,考察内源性空间注意和刺激出现视野位置的交互作用对多感觉整合中听觉主导效应的影响。结果发现：(1)当空间注意处于分散状态时,下视野的裂变错觉量显著大于上视野,而集中条件下则没有差异。(2)闪光出现的位置是否随机不会影响裂变错觉。研究说明了声音诱发闪光错觉中的裂变错觉只会受到内源性空间注意和视野位置交互作用的影响。     

Spatial attention based on 2D location and relative depth order modulates visual working memory in a 3D environment

The attentional effect on visual working memory (VWM) has been a heated research topic in the past two decades. Studies show that VWM performance for an attended memory item can be improved by cueing its two-dimensional (2D) spatial location during retention. However, few studies have investigated the effect of attentional selection on VWM in a three-dimensional setting, and it remains unknown whether depth information can produce beneficial attentional effects on 2D visual representations similar to 2D spatial information. Here we conducted four experiments, displaying memory items at various stereoscopic depth planes, and examined the retro-cue effects of four types of cues – a cue would either indicate the 2D or depth location of a memory item, and either in the form of physical (directly pointing to a location) or symbolic (numerically mapping onto a location) cues. We found that retro-cue benefits were only observed for cues directly pointing to a 2D location, whereas a null effect was observed for cues directly pointing to a depth location. However, there was a retro-cue effect when cueing the relative depth order, though the effect was weaker than that for cueing the 2D location. The selective effect on VWM based on 2D spatial attention is different from depth-based attention, and the divergence suggests that an object representation is primarily bound with its 2D spatial location, weakly bound with its depth order but not with its metric depth location. This indicates that attentional selection based on memory for depth, particularly metric depth, is ineffective.     

注意分散对虚假再认的影响

采用DRM范式研究学习阶段不同的注意水平对关联性记忆错觉的影响。结果表明随着注意水平的降低,对学过项目的正确再认率显著下降。对关键诱饵的虚假再认率不易受注意分散的影响。正确再认和虚假再认的记得成分相似,但知道成分的变化趋势不同。虚假再认比正确再认的感知觉细节少。     

道德概念垂直空间隐喻的心理现实性及双向映射

研究以大学生为被试,通过三个实验考察道德概念垂直空间隐喻的心理现实性及双向映射。实验1采用面孔图片和道德词汇的匹配记忆任务发现,道德词出现在上方时,被试对词语和面孔的匹配再认率更高;不道德词出现在下方时,被试对词语和面孔的匹配再认正确率更高。结果证实了道德概念的垂直空间隐喻的心理现实性。实验2通过道德评价任务发现,被试倾向于把空间上方出现的面孔评价为更加道德,把在空间下方的面孔评价为更加不道德,证实了空间信息对道德评价的影响。实验3采用带有空间位置信息的词语记忆任务。结果表明,在位置判断任务中,被试更多地将道德词判断为在上方出现过,更多地将不道德词判断为在下方出现过。结果显示词语的道德色彩影响了空间信息判断。研究结论:传统道德概念垂直空间隐喻存在心理现实性;道德概念和空间概念之间存在双向映射。     

特征和位置信息在价值驱动注意捕获中的作用

本研究采用训练−测试范式考察颜色和位置信息在价值驱动注意捕获中的作用。实验1考察是否存在基于具体位置的价值驱动的注意捕获效应。在训练阶段, 被试对8个位置中两个位置出现的红色目标反应伴随着高奖励反馈, 而对另外两个位置出现的红色目标反应伴随着低奖励反馈, 其它4个位置为中性位置, 没有目标出现。在测试阶段, 一半试次中红色刺激作为分心物出现。结果发现, 只有当分心刺激出现在高奖励位置和两个高奖励位置之间的中性位置时才能够捕获注意; 实验2考察颜色和位置信息在价值驱动注意捕获中的交互作用。在训练阶段, 将颜色特征和位置信息联合起来进行学习。在测试阶段, 和高、低奖励相联结的颜色刺激各在1/3试次中作为分心物出现。结果发现, 只有当高奖励颜色出现在高奖励位置或出现在高奖励位置之间的中性位置时才能够捕获注意。研究结果表明：(1)位置联结的价值驱动的注意捕获效应能够泛化到特定邻近位置上; (2)个体在训练阶段将颜色和位置的联合特征与奖励建立联结, 训练阶段建立的联结不能泛化到部分特征上。价值驱动注意捕获效应的泛化具有选择性。     

The time course of attentional modulation on emotional conflict processing

Cognitive conflict resolution is critical to human survival in a rapidly changing environment. However, emotional conflict processing seems to be particularly important for human interactions. This study examined whether the time course of attentional modulation on emotional conflict processing was different from cognitive conflict processing during a flanker task. Results showed that emotional N200 and P300 effects, similar to colour conflict processing, appeared only during the relevant task. However, the emotional N200 effect preceded the colour N200 effect, indicating that emotional conflict can be identified earlier than cognitive conflict. Additionally, a significant emotional N100 effect revealed that emotional valence differences could be perceived during early processing based on rough aspects of input. The present data suggest that emotional conflict processing is modulated by top-down attention, similar to cognitive conflict processing (reflected by N200 and P300 effects). However, emotional conflict processing seems to have more time advantages during two different processing stages.     

When words and space collide: Spatial attention interacts with lexical access during word recognition

Recent research has suggested an important role for spatial attention in reading, however the nature of this influence is unclear. Further, it has been shown that intention to engage in linguistic processing can enhance lexical processing. Therefore, we developed a novel paradigm to examine the impact of spatial attention on primed and unprimed lexical processing. In a lexical decision task, targets were preceded by a cue to lexical access and spatial location simultaneously. Results indicated that on spatially valid trials, the lexical cuing effect was large and word processing was enhanced, suggesting that spatial attention influences lexical access. On spatially invalid trials, lexical cuing effects were significantly decreased, resulting in a spatial cuing by lexical cuing interaction. Results from this experiment provide evidence that spatial attention interacts with lexical access during word processing. This novel paradigm provides a new avenue for exploring the relations between spatial attention and reading processes.     

Why did Tiger Woods shoot 82? A commentary on

In a recent article, Toner and Moran (2015) argued that athletes need to pay conscious attention to body movements, and that an external focus of attention would not be effective for continued improvement at the elite level. Their arguments appear to be based on misunderstandings of the attentional focus literature. In this commentary, I clarify that adopting an external focus does not imply that performers are not aware of their body movements. Rather, an external focus (i.e., focusing attention of the intended movement effect) refers to the preparation of movement execution. I maintain that an external focus is necessary to optimize performance and learning at any level of performance.     

Emotional stimuli facilitate time perception in children with attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder

The aim of this study was to compare the effect of different emotional stimuli (neutral, positive, and negative) on time perception in children with attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and normal children in dual‐task form. Five hundred and ninety‐nine students from primary schools were randomly selected. The Conner's Teacher Rating Scale (CTRS) questionnaire was completed by teachers. A total of 100 children with a score above the cut‐off point for the CTRS were further assessed using the Child Symptom Inventory‐4 (CSI‐4). A total of 34 children with ADHD and 31 controls completed an emotional time discrimination task in two blocks of 1000 and 2000 ms duration. Children were asked to compare three image groups: neutral with neutral, neutral with positive, and neutral with negative images. Children with ADHD had significantly better performance in the emotional time discrimination task across all conditions when compared with controls: On average, discrimination thresholds were approximately 35 ms shorter for the children with ADHD. Our results indicate that children with ADHD have higher sensitivity to time relative to controls in a situation in which they must distribute resources between temporal and emotional processing. On the basis of the interference effect and the working memory capacity hypothesis, this dividing of attention causes a decrease of time accuracy in normal children.