OpenLB
Open Library of Bioscience
Advanced Search
Memory & cognition
Dec, 2006;34 (8): 1754-68.

Scope of attention, control of attention, and intelligence in children and adults.

Nelson Cowan, Nathanael M Fristoe, Emily M Elliott, Ryan P Brunner, J Scott Saults
Author Information
  1. Nelson Cowan: Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, 18 McAlester Hall, Columbia, MO 65211, USA. cowann@missouri.edu
PMID: 17489300 DOI: 10.3758/bf03195936

Abstract

Recent experimentation has shown that cognitive aptitude measures are predicted by tests of the scope of an individual's attention or capacity in simple working memory tasks and also by the ability to control attention. However, these experiments do not indicate how separate or related the scope and control of attention are. An experiment with 52 children (10 to 11 years old) and 52 college students included measures of the scope and control of attention, as well as verbal and nonverbal aptitude measures. The children showed little evidence of using sophisticated attentional control, but the scope of attention predicted intelligence in that group. In adults, both the scope and control of attention varied among individuals and accounted for considerable individual variance in intelligence. About one third that variance was shared between scope an d control, and the rest was unique to one or the other. Scope and control of attention appear to be related but distinct contributors to intelligence.

References

  1. Percept Psychophys. 1987 May;41(5):393-401 [PMID: 3601620]
  2. J Exp Psychol Gen. 1999 Sep;128(3):309-331 [PMID: 10513398]
  3. Psychol Sci. 1993 Sep;4(5):294-298 [PMID: 25309046]
  4. Psychon Bull Rev. 1996 Dec;3(4):422-33 [PMID: 24213976]
  5. Psychol Rev. 1956 Mar;63(2):81-97 [PMID: 13310704]
  6. Trends Cogn Sci. 2000 Nov 1;4(11):417-423 [PMID: 11058819]
  7. J Exp Child Psychol. 1973 Feb;15(1):100-15 [PMID: 4706960]
  8. Cortex. 2003 Sep-Dec;39(4-5):927-46 [PMID: 14584560]
  9. Memory. 2001 Jul;9(4):383-394 [PMID: 11747590]
  10. Psychon Bull Rev. 2005 Feb;12(1):165-70 [PMID: 15945209]
  11. Mem Cognit. 2001 Jan;29(1):18-33 [PMID: 11277461]
  12. J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn. 2005 Jul;31(4):703-13 [PMID: 16060774]
  13. J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn. 2005 Jul;31(4):714-28 [PMID: 16060775]
  14. Memory. 2005 Apr-May;13(3-4):293-9 [PMID: 15952261]
  15. Nat Neurosci. 2003 Mar;6(3):316-22 [PMID: 12592404]
  16. Psychon Bull Rev. 2002 Dec;9(4):637-71 [PMID: 12613671]
  17. Psychon Bull Rev. 1999 Mar;6(1):87-92 [PMID: 12199316]
  18. Psychol Sci. 2006 Feb;17(2):172-9 [PMID: 16466426]
  19. J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn. 2002 May;28(3):411-21 [PMID: 12018494]
  20. Psychol Bull. 1988 Sep;104(2):163-91 [PMID: 3054993]
  21. J Exp Psychol Gen. 2001 Jun;130(2):169-83 [PMID: 11409097]
  22. Q J Exp Psychol A. 2001 Feb;54(1):31-48 [PMID: 11216320]
  23. Percept Psychophys. 1988 Oct;44(4):369-78 [PMID: 3226885]
  24. Nature. 1997 Nov 20;390(6657):279-81 [PMID: 9384378]
  25. Percept Psychophys. 1998 Jul;60(5):761-7 [PMID: 9682602]
  26. Behav Brain Sci. 2001 Feb;24(1):87-114; discussion 114-85 [PMID: 11515286]
  27. Nature. 2004 Apr 15;428(6984):751-4 [PMID: 15085133]
  28. Psychon Bull Rev. 2004 Apr;11(2):296-301 [PMID: 15260196]
  29. Psychon Bull Rev. 2001 Jun;8(2):331-5 [PMID: 11495122]
  30. J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn. 2004 Nov;30(6):1302-21 [PMID: 15521806]
  31. Child Dev. 2003 Nov-Dec;74(6):1807-22 [PMID: 14669897]
  32. Child Dev. 1999 Sep-Oct;70(5):1082-97 [PMID: 10546336]
  33. J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn. 1991 Jan;17(1):163-9 [PMID: 1826730]
  34. Psychol Rev. 1992 Jan;99(1):122-49 [PMID: 1546114]
  35. Annu Rev Neurosci. 1990;13:25-42 [PMID: 2183676]
  36. Mem Cognit. 1989 Jul;17(4):398-422 [PMID: 2668697]
  37. Acta Psychol (Amst). 1994 Aug;86(2-3):227-72 [PMID: 7976468]
  38. Mem Cognit. 2002 Oct;30(7):1086-95 [PMID: 12507373]
  39. J Exp Child Psychol. 2005 Apr;90(4):303-17 [PMID: 15777923]
  40. Psychol Res. 2005 Jun;69(5-6):412-9 [PMID: 15856289]
  41. Nature. 2004 Apr 15;428(6984):748-51 [PMID: 15085132]
  42. Cogn Psychol. 2005 Aug;51(1):42-100 [PMID: 16039935]
  43. J Exp Psychol Gen. 2003 Mar;132(1):47-70 [PMID: 12656297]
  44. J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn. 1995 Jan;21(1):255-60 [PMID: 7876773]
  45. J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn. 2000 Mar;26(2):336-58 [PMID: 10764100]
  46. Mem Cognit. 1999 Sep;27(5):759-67 [PMID: 10540805]
  47. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform. 2003 Feb;29(1):3-18 [PMID: 12669744]
  48. Psychon Bull Rev. 2003 Dec;10(4):884-9 [PMID: 15000535]
  49. J Exp Psychol Gen. 1997 Sep;126(3):211-27 [PMID: 9281831]
  50. Front Biosci. 2000 Jan 01;5:D108-20 [PMID: 10702373]
  51. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1999 Oct 26;96(22):12959-64 [PMID: 10536030]
  52. J Exp Psychol Gen. 2001 Jun;130(2):199-207 [PMID: 11409099]

Grants

  1. R01 HD021338/NICHD NIH HHS
  2. R01 HD21338/NICHD NIH HHS

MeSH Term

Adolescent
Attention
Child
Cognition
Female
Humans
Intelligence
Male
Journal Article Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

Word Cloud

Created with Highcharts 10.0.0attentioncontrolscopeintelligencemeasureschildrenaptitudepredictedrelated52adultsvarianceoneScopeRecentexperimentationshowncognitivetestsindividual'scapacitysimpleworkingmemorytasksalsoabilityHoweverexperimentsindicateseparateexperiment1011yearsoldcollegestudentsincludedwellverbalnonverbalshowedlittleevidenceusingsophisticatedattentionalgroupvariedamongindividualsaccountedconsiderableindividualthirdshareddrestuniqueappeardistinctcontributors

Similar Articles

Cited By