The role of attention in the binding of surface features to locations. Hyun, J., Woodman, G., F., & Luck, S., J. Treisman & Gelade, Treisman & Sato, 1988.
The role of attention in the binding of surface features to locations [pdf]Paper  abstract   bibtex   
Previous studies have proposed that attention is not necessary for detecting simple features but is necessary for binding them to spatial locations. The present study tested this hypothesis, using the N2pc component of the event-related potential waveform as a measure of the allocation of attention. A simple feature detection condition, in which observers reported whether a target colour was present or not, was compared with feature-location binding conditions, in which observers reported the location of the target colour. A larger N2pc component was observed in the binding conditions than in the detection condition, indicating that additional attentional resources are needed to bind a feature to a location than to detect the feature independently of its location. This finding supports theories of attention in which attention plays a special role in binding features. This study examines the role of attention in binding surface feature information to spatial locations in visual perception. Treisman's feature integration theory proposes that spatially focused attention is necessary to localize and bind the features of an object to the locus of focused attention, but that simple, salient features can be detected without focusing attention

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