Sarah Purnell

Presentation Title

Spatial cueing reduces attentional capture outside attended locations, depending on target- and distractor-defined feature dimensions

Abstract

During visual search, foreknowledge of task-relevant features and locations guides selective attention by enhancing relevant information while minimizing distraction from irrelevant stimuli. Contemporary models suggest that attentional priority arises through interactions between top-down relevance signals and bottom-up salience. Although these models often assume equivalent effects across feature dimensions, evidence suggests interference may depend on target- and distractor-defining features. We tested this by having participants covertly search an 8-item array for a unique target item in a prespecified feature dimension (e.g., color, motion, shape) and indicate the orientation of a line inside the target. On most trials, a valid, central cue indicated the task-relevant hemifield of the search array (top, left, bottom, or right; 4 of 8 items), where the target always appeared. On half of all trials, a singleton distractor in a task-irrelevant dimension appeared within or outside the cued hemifield. Spatial cueing reduced distractor interference at task-irrelevant locations, but this reduction differed across target- and distractor-defined feature dimensions. These results indicate that top-down spatial attention can attenuate distractor-induced capture, but this attenuation is not uniform across all types of distraction.