ATTENTION2 (ATTENTIONAL CAPACITY)
Attention involves mental effort, with some tasks requiring more than others. However, the capacity of our working memory (WM) is regarded as limited; our ability to carry out two tasks simultaneously thus depends upon how much of that capacity each task demands.
An influential model (Kahneman, 1973) represents attention as using up memory capacity but makes allowance for other contributory factors:
variations in the working memory capacity of each individual;
variations in the affective state of the individual (tired, depressed);
variations in the motivation of the individual.
Visual attention in particular is sometimes likened to a spotlight which lights up a chosen portion of the visual field. Like a spotlight, it can be highly focused or diffuse. Where a task makes heavy demands, attention is concentrated very closely on a target. Where a task demands fewer attentional resources, there seems to be a peripheral area to which partial attention is given. Thus, adjacent letters may influence a reader’s ability to perform a letter identification task.
As well as influencing models of first-language reading and listening, the notion of attention plays a part in theories of second language acquisition. There, an important issue is: Do we have to notice (give attentional focus to) the form of a word or of a grammatical structure in order to acquire it? To what extent is our attention directed towards meaning in an L2 communicative situation and away from the form of words that a native-speaker is using?
See also: Automaticity, Working memory
