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Which of the following statements is true of attention and selection?

1) Controlled attention processes are slow, effortful, and consciously guide attention to objects of interest.
2) Attention is the automatic direction of cognitive resources to a select portion of the environment.
3) Automatic attention processes are fast, efficient, voluntary, and triggered by external events.
4) Selection is the conscious direction of cognitive resources to a select portion of the environment.

1 Answer

7 votes

Final answer:

The accurate statement among those given is that controlled attention processes are slow, effortful, and consciously guide attention to objects of interest. While attention can be automatic and selection can be conscious, these processes also encompass involuntary and unconscious aspects.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question refers to the concepts of attention and selection within cognitive psychology. The first statement is true: Controlled attention processes are slow, effortful, and consciously guide attention to objects of interest. Controlled attention is considered a top-down process, which means it is deliberate and under the individual's control, used for tasks that require significant mental resources, such as searching for a lost item. The second statement describes attention as automatic, which is only partially true; while some aspects of attention can occur without conscious control, it often requires deliberate effort especially in complex tasks. The third statement incorrectly describes automatic processes as voluntary; by definition, automatic attention processes are involuntary and fast, and although they are efficient and triggered by external events, they are not under our conscious control. The fourth statement is partially true, but selection can also occur automatically and unconsciously. The overall concept of attention involves the brain's managing of limited cognitive resources and directing them towards relevant stimuli while filtering out less relevant information.

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User Illya
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