The cocktail party effect refers to the brain's ability to filter out "background noise" and focus on one stimulus or certain stimuli in an environment. The interesting aspect comes in when we consider that, though we may be seemingly focusing our attention on the conversation at hand, if someone at the party calls out our name, our attention will snap towards said person. In this way, the effect is considered to be an example of late selection since we are seemingly processing everything in our environment semantically before the attentional filter. 

Cocktail Party Effect

In the Peripheral Spatial Cuing Task, upon given a cue that does not require interpretation (exogenous), such as a flash or spot in a certain direction, subjects will likely involuntarily reorient themselves towards that sudden event. Their reflexive attention has been reoriented towards this cue. This is considered to be a bottom-up process because attention is being captured and controlled by sensory inputs from lower levels of the nervous system.

Posner: Exogenous Cue

Involuntary attention, also called reflexive or exogenously controlled attention, is the involuntary reorientation toward a sudden or important event. Loud noise or sudden silence, flashes, moving objects - any striking or important change - can potentially capture attention without cognitive effort. 

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- Top-Down Attention
- Bottom-Up Attention
- Overt Attention
- Covert Attention
- Sustained Attention
- Voluntary Attention
- Involuntary Attention

Types of Attention

Breedlove, S. & Watson, N. (2017). Behavioral neuroscience, eighth edition. Oxford University Press.

Behavioral Neuroscience 8th Edition

Top-down attention is when we consciously mediate that which we focus on. A good example of this would be studying. 

Top-Down Attention

Overt attention refers to the directing of our senses and our attention toward the same target. For example, upon noticing a star in our peripheral vision, if we direct our eyes towards the star (as well as our attention), we would be directing our overt attention towards the star.

Overt Attention

Covert attention refers to directing our attention towards a target, but not our senses. For example, our ability to keep our eyes fixed on one location while "secretly" scrutinizing some other location in our peripheral vision involves covert attention. 

Covert Attention

Sustained attention is involved when a single stimulus source or location must be held in the attentional spotlight for a protracted period. 

Sustained Attention

Also called consciously or endogenously controlled attention, voluntary shifts of attention come from within; they are the conscious, top-down directing of attention toward specific aspects of the environment, according to our interests and goals.

Voluntary Attention

Involuntary Attention

Bottom-up attention, also known as attentional capture, is an involuntary shift of focus triggered by a prominent stimulus from the environment. For example, if you are concentrating on a conversation in a noisy restaurant, the sudden and loud crash of a dropped tray will likely break through your attentional filters and grab your focus. This response is considered bottom-up because it is driven directly by the external sensory event rather than by internal goals or expectations.

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