Attention and Implicit Learning

Definition
Attention is a term that is used to describe the processes and mechanisms
which entail that attended stimuli are processed faster and more correctly than
nonattended stimuli. It strongly influences how we experience our
surroundings. Another fundamental aspect of behavior is an individual’s ability
to learn. Learning is often categorized into two basic types: explicit and
implicit. Implicit learning is the type of learning which is non-intentional and
takes place in the absence of conscious strategies. There is a strong functional
relationship between attention and implicit learning. This relationship is
reciprocal and can be subdivided into two unidirectional phenomena: First,
there is implicit attentional learning. Here, implicit learning of regularities in
the stimulus material shapes the deployment of selective attention. Second,
there is attention-dependency of implicit learning. This refers to the fact that
underlying regularities in the stimulus material can only be learned when those
stimulus features for which the rule(s) exists are selectively attended. Finally,
there is a circular relation between attention and implicit learning: selective
attention modulates what is learned implicitly, the result of this learning
process determines where selective attention is directed to in the future, what,
in a next step, determines what is implicitly learned, and so forth.
Theoretical Background
Attentional orienting can be voluntary, according to the inner goals of the
observer, or it can be reflexive, driven by salient stimuli in the environment. In
addition, orienting of attention can be biased by implicit learning and prior
experience. The spatial cueing paradigm is a prominent experimental task to
investigate attentional orienting. Here, observers have to respond as quickly as
possible to the onset of a target stimulus, which can appear at either of two
locations, at the left or at the right of the display. Before the target appears,
observers are presented with a cue stimulus which also appears at the left or the
right of the display (Fig. 1).

Attention and Implicit Learning. Fig. 1

Sequence of events during a trial of the spatial cueing paradigm. Each trial
starts with the presentation of the cue which here consists of the filling of one
box. After a short inter-stimulus interval, the target is presented. Cue and target
can either appear on the same side or on opposite sides. In the predictive spatial
cueing paradigm, the cue predicts the target for either the same or the opposite
side with a probability of more than 50%