attenuation theory
a version of the filter theory of attention proposing that unattended messages are attenuated (i.e., processed weakly) but not entirely blocked from further processing. According to the theory, items in unattended channels of information have different thresholds of recognition depending on their significance to the individual. Thus, a significant word (e.g., the person’s name) would have a low threshold and, when mentioned, would be recognized even if that person’s attention is concentrated elsewhere (e.g., in conversation with someone else). See also cocktail-party effect. [proposed in 1960 by British psychologist Anne Marie Treisman (1935– )]