Abstract
Dual-task studies have shown higher sensitivity for stimuli presented at the targets of upcoming actions. We examined whether attention is directed to action targets for the purpose of action selection, or if attention is directed to these locations because they are expected to provide feedback about movement outcomes. In our experiment, endpoint accuracy feedback was spatially separated from the action targets to determine whether attention would be allocated to (a) the action targets, (b) the expected source of feedback, or (c) to both locations. Participants reached towards a location indicated by an arrow while identifying a discrimination target that could appear in any one of eight possible locations. Discrimination target accuracy was used as a measure of attention allocation. Participants were unable to see their hand during reaching and were provided with a small monetary reward for each accurate movement. Discrimination target accuracy was best at action targets but was also enhanced at the spatially separated feedback locations. Separating feedback from the reaching targets did not diminish discrimination accuracy at the movement targets but did result in delayed movement initiation and reduced reaching accuracy, relative to when feedback was presented at the reaching target. The results suggest attention is required for both action planning and monitoring movement outcomes. Dividing attention between these functions negatively impacts action performance.
Highlights
There is still some debate about the details, it is generally agreed that attention is pivotal in the acquisition, development and retention of new skills, as well as the planning and execution of simpler actions such as saccades and hand movements (Deubel & Schneider, 1996; Schneider & Deubel, 2002; Baldauf, Wolf, & Deubel, 2006)
discrimination target (DT) accuracy was high at feedback locations, suggesting attention was allocated to both locations when they were spatially separated, with no apparent cost to overall perceptual accuracy at the movement locations
The statistical significance of this pattern of results was confirmed using one-way repeated-measures analyses of variance (ANOVA) comparing the effect of DT Location separately for Same and Different feedback locations
Summary
There is still some debate about the details, it is generally agreed that attention is pivotal in the acquisition, development and retention of new skills, as well as the planning and execution of simpler actions such as saccades and hand movements (Deubel & Schneider, 1996; Schneider & Deubel, 2002; Baldauf, Wolf, & Deubel, 2006). During the planning and programming of an action, numerous studies have found that attention is allocated to relevant movement goal locations, leading to faster and more accurate visual discrimination at these locations (e.g., Baldauf, Wolf, & Deubel, 2006; Baldauf & Deubel, 2008a, b). This has been interpreted as evidence that selecting a target for action facilitates perceptual processing of the target, suggesting these two functions of attention are linked
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