TITLE

AIMS/OBJECTIVES

HYPOTHESIS

INTRODUCTION ( HISTORY/ AUTHOR/ CONCEPT/ THEORIES)

DESCRIPTION OF THE TEST/ EXPERIMENT ( AUTHOR/ PURPOSE/ ITEMS/ DIMENSIONS/

FACTORS/ TIME LMIT/ RELIABILITY/ VALIDITY/ SCORING)

MATERIALS REQUIRED

SUBJECTS PROFILE

PROCEDURE AND ADMINISTRATION

 PREPARATION
 RAPPORT
 INSTRUCTION
 PRECAUTIONS
 INTROSPECTIVE REPORT

SCORING AND INTERPRETATION

DISCUSSION

CONCLUSION

REFERENCES
TITLE

“SPAN OF ATTENTION TEST”

AIMS/OBJECTIVES

To test the span of attention of 10 subjects.

HYPOTHESIS

H0 : There will be no significant difference in span of attention using meaningful words, non
meaningful words or dots.

H1 : There will be a statistically significant difference in span of attention using meaningful

words, non meaningful words or dots.

INTRODUCTION ( HISTORY/ AUTHOR/ CONCEPT/ THEORIES)

Attention is defined as the process which compels the individuals to select some particular stimulus
according to his interest and attitude out of the multiplicity of stimuli present in the Environment. Thus in
short it is the selective activity of consciousness as a process of getting an object of thought clearly
before the mind. Attention is the term given to perceptual process that selects certain input for inclusion
in our conscious experience or awareness at any given time. Attention is a pre perceptual process that
depends upon our motivation and interest at large as well as the nature of the stimulus which impinge
upon the subject. Attention is the concentration of consciousness upon one object rather than another.
Attention is the process of getting a thought or an object clearly before the mind.

We can conclude that:

 Attention is a process and not a product.

 Attention helps in our awareness of the environment.
 This awareness or consciousness is selective.
 At one time we can concentrate or process our consciousness on a particular object only.
 The concentration or focus provided by the process of attention help us in clarity of the
perception of the perceived object or the phenomena.
 In the chain of stimulus response behaviors it works as a good mediator. Properly attended
stimulus yields a better response.
 Therefore for providing an appropriate response one has to pass through a stage or
preparedness or alertness ( mentally as well as physically) set by the process of attention.
SIGNS AND EFFECTS OF ATTENTION

We can say that a person is paying attention through the process of particular symptoms or reactions
that are accompanied with the state of preparadness ar alertness set by the process of attention. It can
be turning head, fixing eye gaze or turning ears towards the object of attention. Besides this the
muscular and biological functions of the body may be seen to be specifically prepared to the object of
attention for example holding a particular posture.

FACTORS OF ATTENTION

Nature of stimulus: all types of stimuli are not able to bring the same degree of attention. A picture
captures more attention than reading words. Among pictures a motion picture captures more attention
than still pictures. A colored picture is more effective than a black and white picture.

Intensity and size of the stimulus: in comparison to a weak stimulus an intense stimulus like a loud
sound, a strong smell, a bright light cause greater attention.

Contrast, Change and Variety: change and variety capture attention greater than sameness and absence
of variety, for example in written text use of headings in different colors, fonts, sizes, underlining or
highlighting captures more attention than written text in a single font.

Novelty: material that is new, different or never explored earlier has greater impact

Repetition of stimulus: we may ignore a stimulus for the first time but when it is repeatedly presented
we will focus attention to it. For example a typing or spelling mistake may be overlooked once but if it
repeats multiple times on a text page it is noticed.

Attention also depends on the characteristics of the person such as:

Interests: interest is a very helpful factor in securing attention. We attend to objects in which we are
interested. For example in a library a student will select books in a subject that he is interested in.

Motives: the basic drives and urges of an individual are very important in securing attention. Thirst ,
hunger, sex, curiosity, fear are some of the important motives that exercise definite influence upin
attention.

Mental set: the basic drives and urges are motives a person always attends to

Attitudes and prejudice: a positive attitude towards an object or a situation is likely to drive attention
while prejudice acts opposite. Negatively associated events tend to capture more attention.

In general practice it is found that some people can attend to more than one object at a time. People
may possess the abiity to grasp a number of stimuli in one short presentation. The ability of an individual
is evaluated
TYPES OF ATTENTION:-

1. Analytical Attention:- When our attention is diverted towards the analysis of problem and to find out
the prospective for that occurring presently.

2. Habitual Attention:- This type of attention is determined by habits.

3. Ideational Attention:- When the attention is diverted towards some image or status or structure
selected to object.

4. Involuntary Attention:- Here the attention is diverted suddenly toward the stimulus, It hinders the
process of goal seeking sometimes but not always. Ex- attention is attracted to a song while studying.

5. Voluntary Attention:- when the attention is diverted willingly to an object.

The term “span of attention” refers to the numbers of object which can be grasped in one short
presentation. Sir William Hamilton (1959) was the first to carry experimental study in this field. Later on
serial studies were carried on revealing significant facts.

Dallerback (1929) studied the span of attention for dots, words, figures and colors of found them to be
8,8,7,9, 3.9 and 3.0 respectively.

Span of attention actually tells us that how many things can exist in the focus of consciousness at one
time in an individual.

DETERMINATION OF ATTENTION:- The determinants of attention can be categorized as internal and

external.

External determinants of span of attention are-

[1] Nature of stimulus

[2] Intensity of stimulus
[3] Location of stimulus
[4] Contrast of stimulus
[5] Change of stimulus
[6] Isolation of stimulus
[7] Duration of stimulus
[8] Movement of stimulus
[9] Repetition of stimulus

Internal determinants of span of attention are:-

[1] Interest
[2] Basic drives
[3] Mental set
[4] Aim
[5] Meaning
[6] Habit
[7] Disposition and Temperament
[8] Past experience
[9] Emotion
[10]Social motives

The span of Visual attention is observed through the instruments named Tachistoscope.

Tachistoscope is an apparatus designed to expose objects for a brief space of time. A subject is given a
momentary glance from 1/5th to 1/10th of a second on regular or irregular groups of dots or letter and
is required to tell how many he had observed. This instrument was manufactured by Hamilton and was
first used by Whipple.

Tachistoscope are of four type:-

1. Tall Tachistoscope

2. Rotatory Tachistoscope

3. Pendulum Tachistoscope

4. Camera Tachistoscope

OPERATIONAL MEANING:

1. Span of Attention- The term „span of attention‟ refers to the numbers of object which can be grasped
in one short presentation.

2. Meaningful Words- Meaningful words are those words which are nothing but the constitution of one
or more than one letter of English alphabet which provide complete meaning. The words refer to these
words which are written on the card and used in tachistoscope.

3. Non-Meaningful Words- Non-Meaningful words are those words which are nothing but the
constitution of one or more than one letter of English alphabet which does not provide any meaning.
The words refers to these words which are written on the card and used in tachistoscop

DESCRIPTION OF THE TEST/ EXPERIMENT ( AUTHOR/ PURPOSE/ ITEMS/ DIMENSIONS/

FACTORS/ TIME LMIT/ RELIABILITY/ VALIDITY/ SCORING)

MATERIALS REQUIRED

SUBJECTS PROFILE
PROCEDURE AND ADMINISTRATION

 PREPARATION
 RAPPORT
 INSTRUCTION
 PRECAUTIONS
 INTROSPECTIVE REPORT

SCORING AND INTERPRETATION

DISCUSSION

CONCLUSION

REFERENCES