Do the contents of working memory capture attention? Yes, but cognitive control matters.

There has been a controversy on whether working memory can guide attentional selection. Some researchers have reported that the contents of working memory guide attention automatically in visual search (D. Soto, D. Heinke, G. W. Humphreys, & M. J. Blanco, 2005). On the other hand, G.F. Woodman and S. J. Luck (2007) reported that they could not find any evidence of attentional capture by working memory. In the present study, we tried to find an integrative explanation for the different sets of results. We report evidence for attentional capture by working memory, but this effect was eliminated when search was perceptually demanding or the onset of the search was delayed long enough for cognitive control of search to be implemented under particular conditions. We suggest that perceptual difficulty and the time course of cognitive control as important factors that determine when information in working memory influences attention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Concurrent working memory load can facilitate selective attention: Evidence for specialized load.

Load theory predicts that concurrent working memory load impairs selective attention and increases distractor interference (N. Lavie, A. Hirst, J. W. de Fockert, & E. Viding, see record 2004-17825-003). Here, the authors present new evidence that the type of concurrent working memory load determines whether load impairs selective attention or not. Working memory load was paired with a same/different matching task that required focusing on targets while ignoring distractors. When working memory items shared the same limited-capacity processing mechanisms with targets in the matching task, distractor interference increased. However, when working memory items shared processing with distractors in the matching task, distractor interference decreased, facilitating target selection. A specialized load account is proposed to describe the dissociable effects of working memory load on selective processing depending on whether the load overlaps with targets or with distractors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Consumers’ knowledge and safety perceptions of food additives: Evaluation on the effectiveness of transmitting information on preservatives

In this study, consumer awareness and safety perceptions of food additives were identified via survey questionnaire. A total of 430 consumers living in Seoul, Korea participated. The results showed that the respondents were very concerned about preservatives, colorants, and artificial sweeteners in foods. More than two thirds expressed that information on food additives was insufficient. They attributed this lack of information to difficulties understanding the subject of food additives and insufficient education and public relations. Almost half of the respondents chose leaflets and pamphlets as preferable mediums of information transmission.This study also evaluated the impacts of information transmission (e.g., leaflet and pamphlet) on consumers’ knowledge, behavior, and safety perceptions of preservatives using matched pre- and post-surveys. Overall, knowledge scores were improved from 67.3% to 91.9% before and after the campaign, respectively. Safety perception scores significantly increased showing a 60% difference between the pre- and post-tests. The participants indicated that leaflets and posters were useful to understand both the types and functions of preservatives. The results of the pilot pre- and post-surveys implied that safety perceptions of food additives were affected by consumer awareness and knowledge. This study suggests that communication programs familiarizing consumers with various types of food additives must be developed in order to increase safety perceptions and to respond to consumers’ information needs on food additives.