The Selective Attention Theory in Psychology
Attention in psychology is the current awareness or concentration provided on one stimulus at the excursion of the others, which is called the selective attention theory in psychology, (Wickens & McCarley, 2019). The paper focuses on ADHD and decision making.
According to Hüttermann et al., (2018), every person makes several decisions daily. Their consciousness often colours the decision making. Another paper had aimed to investigate how individual differences of attention capabilities are related to perceptual decision-making, (Nunez, Vandekerckhove & Srinivasan, 2017). Hüttermann’s paper is encouraged by the past research, which discussed the importance of the distribution of visual attention during the decision-making process, like for example which was conducted by Orquin & Mueller Loose, in 2013. High-attentional capabilities can be beneficial for ADHD clients to perform the final decision-making performance, as claimed by Hüttermann et al., (2018). The research has used techniques to test the respondents’ attention by using the Attention Window Task, which was developed by Hüttermann et al. (2018). The concerned paper has also used the technique of Offside Decision-Making Task. The result from Hüttermann et al., (2018) paper demonstrated a link between attention capability and performance in the decision-making task, which requires focused attention. According to the concerned paper, Neuroscientists had rationalized the result to be marked by the level of activation of the frontopolar cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. This area also has relevance to the concepts of visual attention. However, the present paper by Hüttermann et al., (2018), has failed to incorporate that explanation or analysis that the difference in the activation might have caused the difference in decision-making among the respondents.
According to Gvirts et al., (2018), There has not been much research that could prove that Methylphenidate can improve decision-making in ADHD patients. Methylphenidate affects improved decision making and cognitive functioning, (Franke et al., 2017). Participants participated in two sessions. According to Gvirts et al., (2018), Methylphenidate (MPH) is effective in indirect agonist dopamine in cognitive dysfunction patients. The paper had tried to analyze the effect of Methylphenidate and had concluded that the dose enhances the severity of ADHD symptoms. According to the paper, dopamine modulation effectively affects impulsive decision-making patterns characterized in patients with cognitive dysfunction, an aspect which was not touched on by Hüttermann et al. Thus, a new aspect of the topic could be understood from the article by Gvirts et al. The paper by Gvirts et al. has several limitations, and a literature gap can be diagnosed. The paper did not discuss the causes of discission making troubles among ADHD patients due to attention deficit problems. The paper did not stress the importance of attention-deficiency on decision making and its neurological basis. The paper, however, could conclude that MPH dosage has a positive impact on the improvement of decision-making among patients with ADHD, and it was also concluded that the effect depends on the level of symptoms of ADHD, an aspect which was not explored by Hüttermann et al., (2018), The research paper has established the effect size between patients with high inattention symptoms and patients who have low-inattention symptoms in their decision-making, however, the different levels of attention deficit among ADHD clients and their treatment were not explored by Hüttermann et al., 2018. Thus, Gvirts et al. besides discussing information effectively about the discission making problem among ADHD people, the paper also discussed the different stages of ADHD and their problems, the gap left in the paper by Hüttermann et al.
Individual Differences in Attention Capabilities and Perceptual Decision-Making
Vaidya & Fellows, (2017), effectively discusses the effect of neuroscience on attention and decision-making. The paper aims to analyze the importance of the ventromedial frontal lobe in optimal learning and valued decision making as it guides attention to complex situations. Neuropsychological studies are influential from the initial stage of decision-making from the perspective of neuroscience, (Vaidya & Fellows, 2017). They have discussed about ADHD from a different perspective, a perspective not discussed by Gvirts et al. or by Hüttermann et al., and the model is named neural models of decision making. According to Vaidya & Fellows (2017), experimental neuropsychology acts as the interface between the clinical-applied research on humans and the fundamental research on human subjects. Decision-making is a complex process, and the paper is based on value-based decision making, (Vaidya & Fellows, 2017). Decision-making enhances motivated behaviour and is affected by the subjective reward that one receives, (Vaidya & Fellows, 2017). According to the aforementioned paper, it can be stated that deficits in directing attention affect associative learning. Deficits in directing attention affect associative learning attention to features in the surrounding is important to bring out a positive outcome and ignore the less important information, as concluded by Vaidya & Fellows, 2017. Attention provides new information that helps in effective decision-making based on the predictive value of cues, (Vaidya & Fellows, 2017). The Article by Gvirts et al., (2018) did not cover these discussion areas. According to Vaidya & Fellows, (2017), failure to attend to the cues could reduce the gain of relevant information and, in turn, affect effective learning in the environment with dynamic value associations. Attention gives feedback attribution to the decisions made in the past and refines the decision in the present, (Vaidya & Fellows, 2017). The paper effectively discusses the points not covered in detail by the other two articles reviewed, (Gvirts et al., 2018, and Hüttermann et al., 2018). The paper argues that in the recent past, emphasis is being laid on the importance of neuropsychological effects of attention on discussion making, and thus, the paper has analyzed both the old papers where such associations have not been made and the more recent papers where the importance of the associations have been made. The limitation of the paper is that it is not based on real respondents like research papers conducted by Hüttermann et al. or Gvirts et al. paper or but past research paper analysis. Thus, Vaidya & Fellows could not analyze the real life challenges of patients with ADHD.
The Article by Pievsky & McGrath, (2018), using the meta-analysis method, has analyzed numerous old articles and compared neurocognitive performances of individuals who have ADHD with individuals not who have ADHD as the control group and stated that Attention deficit is a psychiatric disorder that is characterized by inattention and hyperactivity. The paper considered concluded that ADHD is associated with a deficiency of various neurocognitive domains, which was not discussed by Hüttermann et al. although though the focus had been to discuss about the neurobiological aspects of ADHD. The paper claims that it is the most intense and in-depth review of the neurocognitive functioning of ADHD patients. The paper further discusses how attention deficit among the attention-deficit ADHD patients compared to healthy peers, thus proving that attention deficit affects the decision making in terms of neurocognitive profile. The paper hypothesized that ADHD shows top-down and bottom-up processes disorder. Thus, according to the theories, the executive functioning of such patients gets affected like that of the working memory, attention and decision-making factors. The combined presentation effectively manifests itself in the process of reward learning and decision-making. Most of the meta-analyses that the paper reviewed failed to report the number of participants diagnosed with inattention and hyperactivity. This aspect can be done on the follow-up research, and such analysis is unique compared to other search papers cited here. Gvirts et al. discusses the effects of medicines that can effectively treat ADHD and attention deficit disorders but fails to discuss the theories of ADHD or concepts of neurocognitive functioning. Pievsky & McGrath fulfilled that gap. However, even Pievsky & McGrath failed to analyze the neuropsychological aspects of Attention-deficit on decision making.
The Effect of Methylphenidate on Decision-Making in ADHD Patients
Gwinn & Krajbich, (2020) has introduced a new aspect of the topic of attention. It suggests that the attitude of individuals colours what he or she will attend to. Attitude plays an important role in everyday decisions, a concept well discussed by Chen, Lu & Wang, 2017. According to Gwinn & Krajbich, (2020), it is unclear to state which aspects of attitudes colours the choice process. Thus, the paper aims to analyze this research question, which is not much explored. They used eye-tracking devices. The research findings can be implied by gaining insight on ways to combat social challenges, according to Gwinn & Krajbich, (2020). The paper concluded that individuals allocated more attention to aspects with lower attitudinal accessibility. The paper also concluded that higher is the attitude of certainty and stability in the individuals, they had a lesser effect on attention. However, this leads to sticking to choices that are at par with their attitude. The results imply that people do not simply choose on the line of their subjective values, but their discussions are affected by other aspects of their attitudes. Decisions making are influenced by the social environment assets as the social pressures and peer influence the attention. For example, due to peer pressure, the attitude towards effective body image develops, leading to attention-getting diverted towards such products and discussion making favouring the attitude, (Frederick et al., 2022). Gwinn & Krajbich, (2020), however, does not discuss neuropsychological aspects. The neurological aspects have not been discussed much as Hüttermann et al. or Gvirts et al. have in their papers.
Thus, it can be concluded that attention deficit can influence the decision making and the literature gap that can be identified is that there has not been much work conducted to analyze the neuropsychological aspect of attention-deficit on decision making due to childhood deprivation and parenting style, and thus future research can be conducted to analyze this effect.
References
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Chen, A., Lu, Y., & Wang, B. (2017). Customers’ purchase decision-making process in social commerce: A social learning perspective. International Journal of Information Management, 37(6), 627-638.
Franke, A. G., Gränsmark, P., Agricola, A., Schühle, K., Rommel, T., Sebastian, A., … & Lieb, K. (2017). Methylphenidate, modafinil, and caffeine for cognitive enhancement in chess: a double-blind, randomised controlled trial. European Neuropsychopharmacology, 27(3), 248-260.
Frederick, D. A., Crerand, C. E., Brown, T. A., Perez, M., Best, C. R., Cook-Cottone, C. P., … & Murray, S. B. (2022). Demographic predictors of body image satisfaction: The US Body Project I. Body Image, 41, 17-31.
Gvirts, H. Z., Lewis, Y. D., Dvora, S., Feffer, K., Nitzan, U., Carmel, Z., … & Maoz, H. (2018). The effect of Methylphenidate on decision making in patients with borderline personality disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. International clinical psychopharmacology, 33(4), 233-237.
Gwinn, R., & Krajbich, I. (2020). Attitudes and attention. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 86, 103892.
Hüttermann, S., Helsen, W. F., Put, K., & Memmert, D. (2018). Does visual attention impact on decision making in complex dynamic events?. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 40(3), 163-166.
Nunez, M. D., Vandekerckhove, J., & Srinivasan, R. (2017). How attention influences perceptual decision making: Single-trial EEG correlates of drift-diffusion model parameters. Journal of mathematical psychology, 76, 117-130.
Orquin, J.L., & Mueller Loose, S. (2013). Attention and choice: A review on eye movements in decision making. Acta Psychologica, 144, 190–206. PubMed ID: 23845447 doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2013. 06.003
Pievsky, M. A., & McGrath, R. E. (2018). The neurocognitive profile of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: A review of meta-analyses. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 33(2), 143-157.
Vaidya, A. R., & Fellows, L. K. (2017). The neuropsychology of decision-making: a view from the frontal lobes. Decision Neuroscience, 277-289.
Wickens, C. D., & McCarley, J. S. (2019). Applied attention theory. CRC press.
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