Attention can hardly be called a kind of independent cognitive process, since in itself it not only does not reflect anything, but also as an independent mental phenomenon does not exist. Nevertheless, in psychology, attention is considered the most important element of cognitive activity. What kind of process this is, how it can be, and what are its main functions — all these issues will be considered in the article.
Term
Attention in psychology is a mental cognitive process that ensures concentration of consciousness. Attention allows you to focus consciousness on certain objects and to form an individual attitude towards them.
The objects of attention can be other people, inanimate objects, natural phenomena and other things that can fall into the field of human vision. It is worth noting that only those objects that cause interest in a person or their study due to social necessity fall into this zone. It is also believed in psychology that attention depends on the person’s age, interest in the subject being studied, focus and regularity of special exercises.
Properties and characteristics
Attention in psychology is the concentration of consciousness and its focus on something. It is believed that attention improves other processes of the psyche, such as thinking, remembering, imagination, but does not exist separately from them. But despite this, it has its own properties and has individual characteristics.
Attributes of attention in psychology are:
- Sustainability.
- Concentration.
- Distribution.
- Volume
- Switching.
In psychology, each of these attributes of attention is given characteristics. As a result, we will have the following: stability of attention means the duration of concentration on a task or subject. Concentration refers to increased signal intensity with a limited field of perception. It involves not only a long retention of attention to something, but also a distraction from other environmental influences.
Concentration is manifested during concentration and allows you to get the most complete information about the subject of attention. In general psychology, such a concept as distribution of attention is also considered, that is, a person's ability to concentrate on several objects at the same time.
The amount of attention is the maximum number of objects that a person can concentrate on. By switchability is meant the speed of transition from one activity to another.
What does attention do?
Like any other process, attention performs certain functions. In psychology, attention has the following purpose:
- Detects a signal. Simply put, performs search and vigilant functions.
- Activates the necessary physiological processes.
- Selects information relevant to current needs.
- Provides a concentration of mental activity on the object or activity.
- It determines the strength and selectivity of memory, the direction and productivity of mental activity.
- Enhances perceptual processes by which a person is able to distinguish image details.
- It allows a person to keep the necessary information in short-term random access memory (this is a prerequisite for moving knowledge to the long-term memory storage).
- Another function of attention in psychology is to promote better adaptation, mutual understanding between people and the resolution of interpersonal conflicts.
- An attentive person will always be a pleasant conversationalist, he will learn faster and achieve more in life.
Forms of attention
The definition of attention in psychology is a cognitive activity directed at an object. And depending on its content, the following forms of attention are distinguished:
- External or sensory-perceptual - it is directed at the objects that surround a person.
- Internal or intellectual attention - focuses on the subjective world of the individual, is a prerequisite for self-knowledge and self-education.
- Motor attention is mainly focused on human movements.
Models
In modern science, there are several models of attention:
- Simple sequential information processing.
- Consistent choice.
- Parallel model (simple). As stated by Charles Erickson, objects are reflected in different areas of the retina and are included in the cognitive process independently of each other.
- Parallel model with limited bandwidth. This model was proposed by Thomas Townsen. He assured that the time that a person spends on processing an item depends on the throughput of the processing channels.
- Competitive model of choice.
- Connectionist model.
Types of attention in psychology
Like any other human activity, attention is divided into several types:
- Involuntary attention. That is, a person does not consciously choose what to concentrate on. Usually involuntary attention is caused by a stimulus. Such attention is very difficult to manage, since it is connected with the internal attitudes of a person. Simply put, individuals are only attracted to things that are of interest to them. The object of involuntary attention can be an unexpected noise, a new person, a phenomenon, a moving object, etc. Involuntary attention always arises naturally and provokes a lively emotional response.
- Arbitrary attention. The next type of attention in psychology is called arbitrary. As the name implies, this attention is characterized by a conscious choice of the subject of concentration. It begins at the moment when a person has a motivation to study, cognize or create something. Essential attributes of this process are perseverance and sustainability. However, prolonged voluntary concentration can cause fatigue and severe overwork. Psychologists advise taking breaks during intense mental activity.
- After an arbitrary attention. In psychology, the attention of the post-random type is characterized by the absence of tension during the task. There is a strong motivation and indomitable desire to achieve your goal. It is worth noting that in such attention, human psychology is turned to internal motivation, and not to external. That is, a person is guided by an individual need for action, not a social need, and the results of such attention are the most productive.
Development features
In psychology, attention and memory are not considered static variables; they can be developed and improved. The development of attention is connected with the ability to concentrate on a certain object or objects for a certain period of time, while not being distracted by other matters.
Only at first glance it may seem that it is easy, in fact, concentration is primarily necessary for interest. To improve involuntary attention, you just need to go to a place where there are many interesting objects on which you can focus your eyes.
The development of voluntary attention requires a more serious approach. Here, a person needs to show a strong-willed effort and purposeful actions. It is also necessary to learn how to manage your feelings so that at the crucial moment you do not allow distraction from an important occupation. The most productive of all is considered to be after-attention, since it does not require additional effort.
Training
In psychology, attention is considered an ability that can be trained and achieved high results. You need to train attention from three sides:
- Develop concentration.
- Work with visual attention.
- Develop auditory attention.
Work with concentration
To improve the concentration process, experts recommend choosing an object for observation and trying to focus their attention on it for several minutes. The simpler this item is, the better. For example, you can put a book on the table in front of you and imagine its contents and the main characters. But you can think of the book as an object made of paper and cardboard, imagine the terrifying amount of cut trees that were required to create it. Well, or just pay attention to the shape and color of the subject. It doesn’t matter what exactly a person focuses his attention on, the main thing is that a certain subject (in a particular case a book) is in focus.
In order to bring the best results, you can focus on several subjects at the same time. In this case, not only concentration will be trained, but also the ability to switch attention from one subject to another.
Visual attention exercise
Visual attention is a definition that is absent in psychology. It is not considered separately, but referred to as sensory types of attention, that is, those related to the perception of various stimuli. For example, the visual responds to vivid images, the auditory one responds to sounds, etc. In order to improve visual attention, you need to perform exercises that expand the ability to focus on the subject.
You can, for example, put a certain object in front of you and set yourself the task of looking at it for 3-4 minutes, remembering as many details as possible. First, a person will put together a general idea of the subject, noting its color, shape and size. But the more he concentrates, the more he will consider small details, such as scratches, small details, minor devices, other color shades, etc.
Working with auditory attention
To improve this attention, you need to concentrate about ten minutes on the sounding sound. It’s good if it will be a meaningful speech, but a melody, birdsong, etc. will do.
If a person speaks, then when listening it is worth noting to himself the speed of the speaker, the degree of emotionality and usefulness of the information. Well, if a person listens to audio recordings of stories and fairy tales, and after listening to try to play them.
Attention Management
A fairly large number of people encounter difficulties when they try to increase their level of attention. Some cannot concentrate on the details; others find it difficult to perceive the object of study as a whole. Psychologists advise training with different objects every day. That is, to choose for exercises not only what the brain processes best, but also those things that it considers boring, uninteresting and not worthy of attention. 5-10 minutes a day, and after a while it will be possible to observe noticeable results.
Attention is an important aspect of human life. It is indispensable in the process of training and work. Even in the old world, when there was more than a century before civilized society, and human life was dominated by nature, the most attentive individuals survived. They were the best hunters, less often they died from a poisonous plant accidentally ingested in food, and they reacted most quickly to atmospheric changes, seeking shelter. Maybe the world has changed now, it has become less dangerous and more convenient, but there are still many not always pleasant surprises, so no one has canceled the close attention.