Selective attention and the Stroop effect: automatic processing interference of controlled processing in a colour recognition task

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Selective attention and the Stroop effect: automatic processing interference of controlled processing in a colour recognition task.

Abstract

The interference of automatic processing on controlled processing was investigated in an experiment utilizing the Stroop effect. Previous research discovered that the simultaneous, conflicting interaction of automatic processing of distractors increased the identification time of controlled processing of a particular stimulus attribute. These results have been used to support two-process theories of attention. Using a one-tailed, within participant design, the present experiment manipulated the stimuli by altering word meanings to produce both conflicting and neutral conditions. The findings showed that the conflicting condition did have a significant effect on processing time thus providing further support for two-process theories of attention.

Introduction

We are continuously bombarded with colossal amounts of sensory information available for further processing. However, only a fraction reaches consciousness. Cognitive processes select information through the process of 'attention'.

Attention being the '... process by which cognitive processing resources are allocated' suggests the brain cannot process everything (Edgar, 2007, p.9). Simons and Levin's 'change blindness' study demonstrated this by pedestrians not recognising a switch in person they were talking to (as cited in Edgar, 2007,