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secondary attention

active attention that requires conscious effort, such as the attention needed to analyze a painting or sculpture. In classical psychology, the term is used to denote a higher kind of attention, developed in humans after primary attention. Also called active attention. See also voluntary attention.

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Psychology term of the day

February 1st 2025

attentional narrowing

attentional narrowing

the restricting of attention in high-stress situations to a small set of information sources, with the potential omission of critical, task-relevant information. For example, when driving to the hospital for a medical emergency, the driver may focus attention only on the road ahead and not notice events at the side of the road, such as a pedestrian entering a crosswalk.