Effect of Cognitive Processing Style on Attentional Blink during Analogue Trauma

Abstract

Background: This study attempted to examine the impact of each cognitive processing style (bottom-up, top-down) on attention patterns following a traumatic experience by measuring attentional blink (AB).Methods: Participants were 37 university students with no direct experience of traffic accidents. They were randomly assigned to either a single-task (bottom-up processing) group or a dual-task (top-down processing) group, who performed the Rapid Serial Visual Presentation (RSVP) after watching an analogue trauma video. The correct response rate to target stimuli was then compared between groups based on stimulus type and stimulus presentation interval.Results: In the dual-task group, no significant differences were found. However, in the single-task group, a trend towards a decrease in the correct response rate to the target stimulus was observed 200 ms after the presentation of the traumatic stimulus (i.e., AB).Conclusions: This tendency can be explained by the phenomenon of automatic attentional capture by traumatic stimuli, suggesting a relationship between bottom-up processing and attentional bias.