Evidence for gender differences in visual selective attention

Merritt, Paul S.; Hirshman, Elliot; Wharton, Whitney; Stangl, B; Devlin, James M.; Lenz, A. Stephen

doi:10.1016/j.paid.2007.01.016

Cited by 96 publications

(54 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…These issues are consistent with previous studies, showing that male and female differed in some aspect of attention functioning, such as selective attention (Merrit et al 2007), visual-spatial attention (Collins and Kimura 1997) and sustained attention (Giambra and Quilter 1989). Interestingly, differences between sexes did not regard the rate of accuracy but only the response times.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Attention Skills and Risk of Developing Learning Difficulties

Commodari

2012

Curr Psychol

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Attention is a heterogeneous function, composed of different components involved in acquiring and developing all cognitive and behavioural skills. Attentive difficulties, such as insufficient or inadequate control of the stream of occurring stimuli, have been linked to impairment in executive functions, impulsive behavioral style, academic failure, and difficulties in basic scholastic skills, such as reading and writing. Moreover, specific Learning Disabilities often occur along with and/or complicated by problems in attention. Considering that prerequisites of school learning evolve early in childhood, the overall goal of this study is to investigate the relationships between attention skills and the risk of developing learning difficulties. Specifically, this study attempts to contribute to better identification of the role of the attention measures in the early detection of risk signs of developing learning difficulties. Research has been conducted through a computerized battery to assess attention and an observational questionnaire aimed at identifying the risk of developing learning difficulties. The study examined a sample of preschoolers. The results showed that different components of attention, such as visual selectivity and reaction times, are diversely involved in the risk of developing learning difficulties and in the prerequisite of school learning.Attention is a heterogeneous function that comprises several different processes and capacities that are related aspects of how the organism becomes receptive to stimuli and how it may begin processing, incoming or attended to excitation whether external or internal (Lezak 1995). Attentive processes underline and energize cognitive and behavioral activities, serving somewhat as command operations, calling into play one or more cognitive functions.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Attention Skills and Risk of Developing Learning Difficulties

Commodari

2012

Curr Psychol

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“…Yet, it would seem that the sex effect is not independent from attention. Women direct their attention towards sources of relevant external stimuli more than men, as has been found in several sensory modalities (Bayliss et al 2005;Merritt et al 2007;Popovich et al 2010;Feng et al 2011;Liu et al 2013). Such findings suggest different attentional modulation of SPS in women and in men.…”

Section: Sex Differences With Respect To Somesthetic Sensitivity and mentioning

confidence: 79%

How we perceive our own hands: Effects of attention, aging, and sex

Naveteur

Dupuy

Gabrielli

et al. 2015

Somatosensory & Motor Research

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This study investigates whether both the perception of somesthetic sensations arising spontaneously on the hand and their modulation by attention are subject to change with advancing age and sex. Participants aged between 50 and 68 (N = 24), and younger (19-27; N = 24), with an equal sex ratio in each group, described the spontaneous sensations they felt on one of their hands. Two 10-s tests were carried out with participants either seeing their tested hand (gaze towards the visible hand) or not (contralateral gaze, hidden hand). Within the age range covered by our participants, aging had an effect on the spatial distribution of sensations, insofar as the older participants reported feeling more sensations in their palm whereas the younger participants had more sensitive fingers. Age also influenced the number, nature, intensity, and duration of sensations in interaction with gaze and/or sex. The most frequent pattern was a benefit of ipsilateral relative to contralateral gazing in young women. Attentional modulation was seldom observed in men and was absent among older participants.

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“…First, Rowe et al (2007) controlled for both gender (an equal number of males and females) and time of testing (in between participants' peak and off-peak time of day). Gender differences have been found in selective attention (Merritt et al, 2007) as well as in the effects of mood manipulations (Westermann, Spies, Stahl, & Hesse, 1996) and attention is particularly vulnerable to time of day effects (Valdez et al, 2005). It is possible that such minor differences could affect the outcome of the task, supporting that the broadening of attention occurs under some very restricted conditions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Happy but still focused: failures to find evidence for a mood-induced widening of visual attention

Bruyneel

Steenbergen

Hommel

et al. 2012

Psychological Research

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In models of affect and cognition it is held that positive affect broadens the scope of attention.Consistent with this claim, previous research has indeed suggested that positive affect is associated with impaired selective attention as evidenced by increased interference of spatially distant distractors. However, several recent findings cast doubt on the reliability of this observation. In the present study we examined whether selective attention in a visual flanker task is influenced by positive mood induction. Across three experiments, positive affect consistently failed to exert any impact on selective attention. The implications of this null-finding for theoretical models of affect and cognition are discussed.

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Evidence for gender differences in visual selective attention

Cited by 96 publications

References 21 publications

Attention Skills and Risk of Developing Learning Difficulties

Attention Skills and Risk of Developing Learning Difficulties

How we perceive our own hands: Effects of attention, aging, and sex

Happy but still focused: failures to find evidence for a mood-induced widening of visual attention

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