Contingent capture of visual-spatial attention depends on capacity-limited central mechanisms: evidence from human electrophysiology and the psychological refractory period

Biol Psychol. 2009 Feb;80(2):218-25. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2008.10.001. Epub 2008 Oct 19.

Abstract

It has recently been demonstrated that a lateralized distractor that matches the individual's top-down control settings elicits an N2pc wave, an electrophysiological index of the focus of visual-spatial attention, indicating that contingent capture has a visual-spatial locus. Here, we investigated whether contingent capture required capacity-limited central resources by incorporating a contingent capture task as the second task of a psychological refractory period (PRP) dual-task paradigm. The N2pc was used to monitor where observers were attending while they performed concurrent central processing known to cause the PRP effect. The N2pc elicited by the lateralized distractor that matched the top-down control settings was attenuated in high concurrent central load conditions, indicating that although involuntary, the deployment of visual-spatial attention occurring during contingent capture depends on capacity-limited central resources.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Acoustic Stimulation / methods
  • Adult
  • Attention / physiology*
  • Discrimination Learning
  • Electroencephalography / methods
  • Evoked Potentials / physiology*
  • Female
  • Functional Laterality
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Pattern Recognition, Visual / physiology
  • Perceptual Masking
  • Photic Stimulation / methods
  • Reaction Time / physiology
  • Refractory Period, Psychological / physiology*
  • Space Perception / physiology*
  • Time Factors
  • Young Adult