Beyond perception: testing for implicit conceptual traces in high-load tasks.
The present commentary addresses the main results obtained in the Butler and Klein [Butler, B. C., & Klein, R. (2009). Inattentional blindness for ignored words: Comparison of explicit and implicit memory tasks. Consciousness and Cognition, 18, 811-819.] study and discusses them in relation to the Perceptual Load Theory of Lavie [Lavie, N. (1995). Perceptual load as a necessary condition for selective attention. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 21, 451-68.]. The authors claim that the use of implicit indexes of conceptual distractor processing in high-load situations would be an important addition to the load literature, which would benefit the research field regardless of their positive or negative findings.
Ruz
María
M
Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Campus de Cartuja s/n, 18071 Granada, Spain. mruz@ugr.es
Fuentes
Luis J
LJ
D001244:Association; D001288:Attention; D001364:Awareness; D003210:Concept Formation; D005403:Fixation, Ocular; D006801:Humans; D011939:Mental Recall; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D011932:Reading; D014706:Verbal Learning