In this term paper we will discuss about:- 1. Definition of Attention 2. Types of Attention 3. Characteristics 4. Conditions 5. Span 6. Educational Applications.
Term Paper Contents:
- Term Paper on the Definition of Attention
- Term Paper on the Types of Attention
- Term Paper on the Characteristics of Attention
- Term Paper on the Conditions of Attention
- Term Paper on the Span of Attention
- Term Paper on the Educational Applications of Attention
Term Paper # 1. Definition
of Attention:
If we say that a particular individual is not paying attention, we are making a mistake, but if we say that he is not paying attention to what we are saying, it is more appropriate, because that person is certainly paying his attention to something. Attention is closely related to awareness. At this point, we are putting forward some main definitions of the concept of attention.
Generally speaking, the process of concentrating the mind upon a particular activity with a view to achieving a specific subject is called attention:
1. Derived Attention:
A particular stimulus may be repulsive in itself, but it may be found attractive on account of another stimulus. In this case, the attention fixed upon the former stimulus is called derived attention. A student having no interest in science studies it, nevertheless, with full attention because he wants to pass in the examination. In the case of derived attention, it is the derived interest which motivates the individual, not the primary interest.
2. Immediate Attention:
When attention becomes focused upon certain objects without any particular effort on the observer’s part, it is called immediate attention. The root cause of this attention is interest, and our consciousness concentrates upon the object without any effort on our part.
3. Sensory or Concrete Attention:
When the attention focuses upon a stimulus possessing a distinct and palpable form, it is called sensory or concrete attention. For instance, the attention which we fix upon a table, chair, book, tree or any other object.
4. Ideational of Abstract Attention:
The individual’s consciousness focuses itself upon the main stimuli through contemplation or thinking. This kind of attention, called ideational attention, is characterised by thinking. Such thoughts as sympathy, pity, maternal love, attachment, etc., belong to this category because they are thought which can be experienced, but not directly observed. Conceptualization of eternal values and virtues also falls into this category. This kind of attention is primarily abstract.
Term Paper # 2. Types of
Attention:
Having become familiar with the various conditions which influence attention, it is desirable to obtain some knowledge about the various kinds of attention.
Psychologists have classified attention in the following manner:
1. Voluntary Attention:
This kind of attention operates or comes into existence when the individual consciously fixes all his energy upon a particular stimulus. For instance, the student concentrates his attention upon the questions likely to be asked in an examination, because he wants to pass test. Voluntary attention may also be called active attention because, in this case, the attention is consciously or voluntarily activated, and focused by the individual. Voluntary attention develops gradually with age and maturity and it develops fully when the individual comes into contact with the environment.
2. Non-Voluntary Attention:
The state in which our attention is drawn towards and focused upon a particular object without our desiring it is called non-voluntary attention. While studying for an examination, the student’s attention is consciously focused upon his books, but his attention will be drawn away if some neighbour plays his radio at full volume. In the same way, attractive and beautiful objects draw a person’s attention without any desire on his part to observe them. Some psychologists have called this kind of attention Spontaneous Attention or Habitual Attention, because it is innate. It can also be considered passive or effortless attention.
3. Unvoluntary Attention:
This kind of attention occurs when a person is forced to attend to something against his wishes. The individual is compelled to pay attention to some stimulus although he wishes to avoid or ignore it. This kind of attention has no spontaneity in it, and consequently the individual has to make an effort to focus his attention. If during a teacher’s lecture some loudspeaker starts blaring, the teacher as well as his students avoid to pay attention to its noise.
Term Paper # 3. Characteristics
of Attention:
Attention makes a very important contribution to the acquisition of fresh experiences. In addition the very nature of attention is such that it subsumes within itself a number of factors, sub-factors and influencing factors.
The following are characteristics of attention:
1. Mental Activity:
The process of focussing attention on any object or aim is performed by the mind, but the activity of the mind requires that the aim of concentrating upon the object or the goal should be clear. In the absence of clarity, the mental process does not become active. If the process is active, it provides a stimulus for attention.
2. Selectiveness of Attention:
Our attention does not focus upon a number of objects simultaneously; instead, at any one moment our attention focusses upon one specific object. The object on which our attention focusses itself is selected from among a number of objects, and that object possesses some specific and special feature or interest for us. This explains why, from among a class of 30 or 40 students, the teacher’s attention often directs itself primarily towards the naughty or the extremely dull students.
3. Shifting Nature:
It is the nature of attention that it is unstable or shifting. The individual focusses his attention upon one particular object only with effort, and even then he manages to keep it fixed upon that object for hardly three or four seconds. However, there are notable exceptions to this, specially observable among students preparing for examination or devotees singing religious songs these being situations in which persons concentrate their attention for many hours continuously.
4. Narrow Span:
The span of attention, at the moment of its initiation, is quite limited. As soon as the task is completed or when a particular series is completed, attention automatically changes to some other object. Adults can usually concentrate attention upon number of things simultaneously, whereas children focus their attention upon single objects.
5. Mobility:
Attention is always in such a state that it does not remain fixed upon one object for any length of time. Exhaustions or boredom are also responsible for this fact. When we become exhausted with studying text-books, we change over to novels or stories. The turning of attention from one object or activity to another is called its mobility.
6. Activeness or Alertness:
Attention is made possible because of consciousness, and for this reason it is alert. The activities or goals on which we focus our attention have their existence in our consciousness.
7. Readiness:
According to Wood worth, “The preparatory set of readiness is the essential response in attending.” This is a profoundly true statement. Our body prepares itself for a particular activity even before the process or activity is initiated. Our body reacts according to attention.”
8. Motor Adjustment:
Whatever the object on which our attention is focussed, our sense organs and motor organs adapt themselves to take part in the activity required. As soon as the students seat themselves in the class, their ears, eyes, necks and their bodily positions adapt themselves with reference to the teacher. As N.L. Munn has put, “The act of attending is characterised by reporter adjustment, postural adjustment, muscle tension and central neural adjustment.”
9. Purposiveness:
It is a universal truth that we focus our attention only upon those objects which satisfy our needs or serve our interests, and that, for the achievement of our goals, we become completely attentive. During examinations, students focus their entire attention on their studies because their interest lies in passing the examination.
10. Inquisitiveness:
Our attention is influenced by mobility and explore for novelty. Woodworth named it as inquisitiveness. It explore for new objects.
11. Three Aspects:
There are three aspects of attention:
(i) Cognitive,
(ii) Conative, and
(iii) Affective.
The process of attention complete in all these three aspects.
Our mental life is a stream of consciousness. We do not attend to all those incidents; facts go on at the same time. We select one out of them. Fechner has rightly said, “Attention represents a selection or singling out of certain aspects of the observable environment to the exclusion of others which may at the time be impinging upon the sense organs.”
The Attention has an important place in our life. In one field of learning and habit formation, we have to go with the process of attention.
Following are the characteristics of attention:
1. Attention is selective.
2. Attention has shifting nature.
3. Attention has cognitive, affective and conative aspects.
4. Attention has narrow range.
5. Attention increases of clearness of the stimulus.
6. Attention needs motor adjustment.
Term Paper # 4. Conditions
of Attention:
How does the concentration of attention take place, and what are the conditions which favour this concentration?
There are two kinds of conditions which influence attention:
1. External Conditions of Attention:
Those conditions affecting attention which are concerned with the environment are called its external conditions. These include the form, colour, shape, etc., of the object.
These conditions are as follows:
a. Nature:
Our attention is directed towards an object only when a stimulus arises. Infants focus their attention on books or magazines containing colourful pictures. The focussing of attention depends upon the nature of the stimulus. This concentration will be greater, if the stimulus is more intense, and less if the stimulus is weak.
b. Definite Form:
The focussing of attention is also determined by the form the object possesses. If the object or goal has a definite form, focussing of attention is more effective and intense, where as in the case of an object or purpose with an indeterminate form, focussing of attention is hindered.
c. Size:
It has generally been observed that objects of big size attract our attention more easily than do objects of small size. We are easily attracted by large posters or advertisements hung upon walls. Teachers, too, often make use of maps, models and letters of large size to focus the attention of children upon them more effectively.
d. Movement:
Our attention also, usually, focusses itself more easily upon stimuli possessing power of movement. A moving train, a flying aeroplane, or kite falling from the sky easily attracts the child’s attention. The teacher, too, can focus the attention of his students more effectively by using moving films, animated models and cartoons.
e. Novelty:
Objects which are new to a person’s experience draw his attention towards themselves very powerfully. The huge hoardings giving the message of family planning draw one’s attention quickly, because the design made upon them is a novel pattern. In the same way, in the classroom, the students’ attention will be easily focussed, if the teacher uses new pictures, models maps, etc.
f. Change or Variety:
Whenever there is a change in the stimulus, the change itself draws the observer’s attention towards itself. The sudden bursting out of noise in a quiet and peaceful environment draws one’s attention, and it is only natural for a person to try to find out, at once, the cause of the noise.
g. Mysteriousness:
If two people are carrying on a normal conservation, a third person’s attention is not easily attracted towards them. But, if they begin talking of mysterious things or subjects, the observer’s attention is immediately drawn by the mystery of their conversation. It is thus evident that when an element of mystery enters normal or common place behaviour, attention is directed towards it at once.
h. Condition, State or Situation and Achievements:
Many various kinds of stimuli are found existing in human life, since they arise from the myriad situations and circumstances in which an individual finds himself. As a result, the condition or state of attention will be similar to the condition or state of the stimulus.
i. Contrast:
Contrast has a very important place in the focussing of attention. Wherever there is a contrast, it strikes us and our attention is drawn towards it. People’s attention is automatically drawn to two persons, if one of them is fair and the other dark, or if one of them is very tall and the other very short.
j. Duration:
The focussing of attention is also influenced by the duration of a stimulus. A stimulus continuing for a longer period succeeds in retaining the observer’s attention for a longer time, while, on the other hand, objects providing a stimulus for a shorter time hold the observer’s attention for a shorter period.
k. Repetition:
When any object is repeatedly observed or a lesson is repeatedly learnt or revised, it attracts attention towards itself. For this reason teachers are always advised to revise the lessons taught in class.
l. Intensity:
Powerful and intense stimuli attract our attention more powerfully than do weak stimuli. Any bright and strong light or a bright colour attracts our attention more effectively than does a soft light or a light colour.
2. Internal Conditions of Attention:
Those conditions of attention which reside within the individual are referred to as the internal conditions of attention. Among these conditions are—interest, aptitude, meaning, past experience, etc. which help in focussing the attention.
They are described in the following lines:
a. Attitude:
A person’s attitude towards any object is an indicator of the period for which the person’s attention may be fixed on it. As a general rule, a person’s attention remains fixed for a longer period on those objects towards which he has a favourable and positive attitude.
b. Aptitude:
The focusing of attention also depends upon the aptitude of an individual in certain spheres. If a child has greater aptitude in science than other fields, his attention will focus more readily on science. Individual tend to focus attention more deeply upon activities or field of activity for which they have a greater aptitude.
c. Curiosity:
Every individual has a curiosity to become familiar with any new object or piece of knowledge and in order to satisfy that curiosity, he focusses his attention upon that new object. Curiosity focusses the observer’s attention upon the mysterious element in any new object. Individuals become scientists or philosophers only because of their curiosity drive them to contemplate these fields of knowledge.
d. Past Experience:
Our past experiences are the foundations of our attention. When one lesson has been learnt in the class, the next lesson should be based upon the knowledge imparted by the first lesson. If this principle is neglected, the individual’s attention does not focus itself upon the new lesson being taught.
e. Meaning:
The individual’s attention focusses more conveniently and quickly upon objects and pieces of knowledge whose meaning or purpose is readily perceived by him. Children who understand scientific subjects easily have no difficulty in focussing their attention on them, as they proceed to relatively more complex chapters and lessons, because they have understood the meaning of the preceding lessons.
f. Habit:
Habit is that condition of attention which develops specially from the bodily mechanism and its activity. It is because of habit that our attention focusses upon a particular activity. It is often seen that the cricket players become so habituated to the game that they can often be seen standing by the roadside and listening to cricket commentaries with complete attention and absorption. Their whole attention focusses upon the commentary without any effort.
g. Goal:
Every object connected with a goal desired by the individual attracts his attention. During examinations, students fix their attention upon the questions asked by the teacher, because those questions are at the moment, a means to their goal of succeeding in examination.
h. Necessity:
Our attention also focusses itself upon those objects which either satisfy our needs or help in their satisfaction. It is a normal thing for our attention to be focussed upon food when we are hungry or upon water when thirsty.
Apart from these conditions, instinctive needs, such as hunger, thirst, sex, emotions, philosophy of life, past experiences and interests are also true internal condition of attention.
Term Paper # 5. Span of Attention
:
The extent or limit of the ability of a person to attend to a concentrate on something the length of time during which a reader can concentrate on what he is reading without thinking of anything else, varies with age, physical mental and emotional condition and the nature of material read.
Attention brings an object into consciousness. How many objects can be brought into consciousness at a time, the number of them is called span of attention. We cannot attend more than five to six objects at one time.
In experimental psychology, we measure numerous problems of attention such as fluctuation, distraction, apprehension, division, shifting, etc. Shifting among of attention is called distraction of attention. Distract forces mentally effort to six person a task.
Span of attention reveals that the power to apprehend does not increase with age; but the capacity to combine units into more and more complex experiments show that an individual cannot attend to any object continuously for a long time. Interest and intensity also effects attention. Distraction is harmful to the achievement of the work.
Term Paper # 6. Educational Application of Attention
:
Attention has a very important place for teaching learning process. Following points should be taken into consideration for the development of attention.
Attention (consciousness) upon a particular object. When we read a book, we focus our attention upon it fully. This process of concentration of attention has been accepted as a major factor in learning.
Psychologists have defined attention in the following various terms:
1. Dumville:
“It (attention) is the concentration of consciousness upon one object rather than others”.
2. Stout:
“Attention is simply conditioned, so far as it requires for its satisfaction to the fuller cognisance of view of its objects.”
3. J.S. Ross:
“Attention is a process of getting an object of thought clearly before the mind.”
4. N.L. Munn:
“From whatever angle we consider from the point to its effects, the cognitive process.”
5. McDougall:
“Attention is merely conation or striving considered from the point of view of its effect on cognitive process.
6. C.V. Good:
Attention is the attributive state of sensory clearness the active selection and emphasis of one component of a complex experience, a sensory adjustment of providing for optimal stimulation of a sense modality, adjustment of the sense organs to facilitate response to a particular stimulus or situation and to inhabit response to extraneous stimuli or situation.
It is evident from the foregoing definitions that attention is always obtained or assured. An individual is always in a state of attention. If we claim that a particular student is not paying attention, what we actually mean is that he is paying attention to something other than the pronouncements of the teacher.
When a number of persons are sitting together discussing a particular subject, there may be some who are not paying attention to the subject under discussion because their attention is centred in their thoughts. “The development of attention is centred almost exclusively around the problem of how to direct the attention to a series of subjects or thought processes which are of enough vital significance to keep one alert.”
Gilliland and Stevens Say:
Sensory organs have an impact upon attention. We often experience that, in the case of each individual student, we focus our attention upon separate experiences. Tests have indicated that, because of one or the other reason, our behaviour does not develop. The state of attention is not always the same. The attention focusses on one object at one moment and then upon another object the next moment. If we have to focus simultaneously on a number of objects, out attention will fluctuate rapidly and become unstable.
Attention is a term which implies certain processes lying at the centre of acquisition of sensory knowledge in the process of experiencing. Attention divides the perceived world before us into a centre and a frame or margin.
Attention is focal consciousness. Morgan told it as marginal consciousness. When our consciousness works for reading or to do any desired activity, it is called our focal consciousness, while table, chair, pen, inkpot, paper etc., are our marginal consciousness. Therefore, attention is a selective mental process. We bring it to consciousness through appropriate stimulus.