ATTENTION

MEANING:

Attention is no mental faculty but an active part of consciousness. The activity of concentrating mind on a matter is called attention. Attention is not possible in the absence of consciousness, but attention and consciousness are not one. The field of consciousness is vast and attention is one of its parts. For example, I am reading at this time.  Book, note, table, chair, etc., all this can be under my consciousness, but my attention is on the words being read on the paper.

DEFINITION:          

1. Attention is the concentration of consciousness upon one object rather than others – Dumvile.

2. Attention is the process of getting an object of thought clearly before the mind – Ross.

3. Attention is merely conation or striving considered from the point of view of its effect on cognitive process – Mc Dougall.

4. Attention is being keenly alive to some specific factor in our environment. It is a preparatory adjustment for response – Morgan and Gilliland.

5. Attention can be thought of as the bridge over which some parts of the external world the aspects selectively focused on are brought into the subjective world of our consciousness so that we may regulate our own behaviour – Carver and Schuler.

NATURE:

1. Attention is focusing of consciousness on a particular object.

2. Attention is constantly shifting/changeable

3. Attention is selective

4. Attention is a mental process

5. Attention is a state of preparedness or alertness

6. Attention has narrow range/span

TYPES OF ATTENTION:

According to J.S.Ross, the following classification of attention may be presented.

1. Non-volitional Attention: It is also called involuntary attention. It is aroused by our instinct and also by our sentiments. This type of attention aroused without the play of will or the individual does not have to make efforts in order to focus his attention on a particular object or event. For example, the mother’s attention towards her child. It is also of two types.
   

2. Enforced Attention: Due to striking qualities of the stimulus an individual is forced to attend or concentrate his attention on it. This attention is sustained by instincts.

3. Spontaneous Attention: It occurs without efforts and is sustained by some internal motivation and sentiments. This attention is sustained by sentiments.

4. Volitional Attention: It is also called voluntary attention. In which the individual has to make efforts, the person has to exercise his interest and will power in order to focus attention. It is least automatic and spontaneous and not given whole heartedly like volitional attention. It is also of two types.
   

5. Implicit Attention: It is that in which individual has to make only ordinary efforts, he does not have to take pains. Here a single act of volition is sufficient to bring about attention.

6. Explicit Attention: here the individual has to make efforts for a number of times. He has to make efforts to attend to the object or event else attention shifts. Here we need repeated acts of will to sustain attention.

Factors related to attention:

Attention depends upon several factors. These factors may be of two types – external and internal.

External Factors: The external factors are concerned with the environment. These are also called objective factors.

1. Size: Size has effect on attention. It is natural an unusual size attracts attention of the people. Very big size or very small size too draws our attention when compare with normal size. For example, a Lilliputian (dwarf man) walking on the road too draws our attention.

2. Intensity: Loud sounds, strong smells and deep colours are attractive in nature. If a sound is intense then it would attract our attention. The thunder is louder than a car sound. So, our attention is drawn on thunder.

3. Repetition: If a thing or person or event is repeated several times, then our attention drawn to it. When an advertisement is repeated in the walls drawn our attention.

4.  Duration: attention is drawn to a thing that lasts longer. A salesperson draws attention by lengthening his voice.

5. Movement: Moving things draws our attention more than stationary one. A moving car attracts faster than a stationary car.

6. Contrast: Anything that is different from its surrounding is contrast. A black dust in the milk drawn attention quickly. A swan among the crows attracts suddenly.

7. Change: Change draws our attention easily. In the midst of continuous noise a slight moment of silence draws our attention.

8. Novelty: Newness attracts quickly than traditional one. A new teacher attracts the children very much in the school.

Internal Factors: The internal factors are concerned with the individual. So, these are also called subjective factors.

1. Interest: we are interested in some things and disinterested in other things. Interesting things draws our attention soon. An engineer and a botanist going down the same path will attend entirely different things on the way. Engineer attention will be on the buildings and botanist attention will be on the trees.

2. Desire: A person’s desire becomes a cause of paying attention to a thing. For example, a person has to desire of buying a hammer. There are many things available in a market, but when he goes to a shop where hammers are available.

3. Motives: Basic motives are important in drawing attention. Human motives like hungry, thirst, sex, safety, etc., play a vital role in drawing attention. A thirst person attention always on where water is available.

4. Aim / Goal: Every man has some immediate aim and ultimate goal in their life. The immediate aim of a student is to pass in the examination while his ultimate goal may be to become a doctor. The student, whose goal is not to pass the examination, will not be concerned with textbooks or note, etc, but who has the aim to pass in the examination, will at once attend to them.

5. Habit: Habit is also a vital determinant of attention.  The kind of habit we found in our life, our attention is drawn to such things. if a person has habit to play cricket, then his attention is always drawn to it, and he will listen to cricket commentaries with attention.

6. Past Experience: It is also affect attention. If we know by our past experience that a particular person is sincere to us, we shall pay attention to whatever he advises us. If our experience is contrary, we shall not attend even to his most serous advice.

Apart from these above factors, aptitude, attitude, mental set, disposition and temperament etc., are also an internal factors.

SPAN OF ATTENTION

1. Span of attention refers to the number of objects, letters and digits one can attend to in a fraction of a second so as exclude eye movement or counting – Prem Praksh.

2. The extent or limit of the ability of a person to attend to a concentrate on something. The length of time which a reader can concentrate on what he is reading without thinking of anything else is called Span of attention.

3. It varies with age, physical, mental and emotional condition and nature of material read.

4. Attention brings an object into consciousness. How many objects can be brought into consciousness at a time, the number of them is called span of attention. On an average span of attention of a child is limited to 4 to 5 whereas for adults it is within 6 to 7 letters or digits.

5. Tachistoscope is the apparatus using for determine the span of attention.