Attention and the efficiency of information processing in human visual cortex

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event Attention and the efficiency of information processing in human visual cortex John Serences1* 1 University of California, San Diego, Department of Psychology, United States Current behavioral goals and motivational drives play a critical role in shaping and refining information processing so that only the most relevant sensory stimuli are perceived and allowed to influence decision making. Traditional accounts hold that these ‘top-down’ attentional factors are critically important in information processing precisely because attention enhances the gain of the sensory neurons that are selectively tuned to relevant stimulus features. These models are intuitively appealing, and suggest that attention effectively increases the intensity of important stimuli in a manner analogous to turning up the volume knob on a stereo. Using the early visual system as a model, I will use fMRI and a novel analytic approach to show that attention modulates the gain of the most informative sensory neurons given whatever specific perceptual task confronts the observer. Counter-intuitively, enhancing the gain of the most informative sensory neurons often means biasing patterns of neural activity away from the patterns evoked by sensory stimuli. Thus, contrary to most traditional accounts, these observations suggest that the primary function of attention is not simply to enhance the gain of stimulus-driven responses, but to optimize performance on the current perceptual task. Keywords: Attention, Visual Perception, fMRI, selective attention, Information Processing Conference: ACNS-2012 Australasian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference, Brisbane, Australia, 29 Nov - 2 Dec, 2012. Presentation Type: Keynote Talk Topic: Attention Citation: Serences J (2012). Attention and the efficiency of information processing in human visual cortex. Conference Abstract: ACNS-2012 Australasian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference. doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2012.208.00002 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 14 Oct 2012; Published Online: 26 Oct 2012. * Correspondence: Dr. John Serences, University of California, San Diego, Department of Psychology, La Jolla, United States, jserences@ucsd.edu Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers John Serences Google John Serences Google Scholar John Serences PubMed John Serences Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.