AsianScientist (Nov. 24, 2016) – Using brain scans and behavioral studies, researchers at Tohoku University have found that visual attention follows a two step process: First making a broad sweep before narrowing down on a smaller area. Their results have been published in Scientific Reports.
Studies of visual attention have uncovered an interesting inconsistency in our spatial recognition ability. For example, one study found that when a person looks for a friend in a crowd, visual attention makes not only the friend, but also the people standing around the friend more visible. However, another study claims that attention tends to focus on the friend’s face, ignoring everyone else.
According to the research group led by Professor Satoshi Shioiri of the Research Institute of Electrical Communication, these discrepancies can be attributed to the different stages of the attention process. Their brain wave measurements revealed that a wide area around the attention focus is facilitated by attention at early visual processing, and that information at the attended location is extracted selectively at later processing.
The research group thus proposes a model of spatial attention that has two stages with different functions. The attention model proposed could predict different attention effects for different visual processes. This would be useful particularly for complex tasks such as driving, where it is important to notice not just pedestrians but also other elements on the road. Precise estimation of attention helps people to understand potential dangers in attention-demanding conditions.
The article can be found at: Shioiri et al. (2016) Visual Attention Spreads Broadly but Selects Information Locally.
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Source: Tohoku University; Photo: Pixabay.
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