The aim of the current study was to determine whether the vigilance decrement occurs when observerssearch for a critical signal that consists of an elementary feature (line orientation). Elementary features areprocessed quickly and presumably with minimal attentional resources (Treisman & Gormican, 1988). Suchfeatures should be resistant to the vigilance decrement, according to theories of the decrement that positdepletion of attentional resources as the underlying mechanism. Observers completed a vigilance task inwhich they reported the presence of a critical signal, which consisted of a slanted line presented amidstvertical lines. A vigilance decrement was evident in correct detections and reaction time. In a follow-upstudy, a pop-out effect for the slanted line was replicated in a traditional search task. To the extent that anelementary feature is processed preattenatively, the occurrence of a vigilance decrement challenges theoriesof the decrement based on depleted attentional resources. However, whether elementary features areprocessed without attention has been debated and further studies are needed. Identifying displaycharacteristics that can be processed automatically without depleting attention will enhance monitoringperformance by eliminating the decrement in safety critical tasks such as aviation and baggage screening.
展开▼
