Perception of Auditory Events: Attentional Limitations

Abstract

Abstract : There is strong evidence that objects presented simultaneously in a visual array have their component features initially processed in parallel, then subsequently combined to form the perceived objects. The evidence is in the form of the nature and frequency of perceptual errors and the pattern of reaction times for recognition of presented features and objects. Continuing project research is providing equivalent evidence which demonstrates, for the first time, similar analyses and perceptual processing for auditory events. An important side benefit to the research is the-validation of new methods to define the elemental features for the perception of important classes of auditory stimuli. In addition to training future scientists, long-term benefits of the research are (1) in defining important, moderate- and higher-level limits (e.g., beyond masking or sensory acuity) to accurately and rapidly perceiving auditory events (and the sources of the events) under stressful, noisy conditions, and (2) in defining effective strategies for reliably circumventing those newly-identified limits. Auditory Attention, Auditory Features, Feature Integration, Integral, Separable Dimensions.