They observed the phenomenon during their perception and attention experiments.
Attentionplays a significant role invisual perception.
In this experiment, researchers asked participants to watch a video of people tossing a basketball.
Marco Bottigelli / Getty Images
Afterward, the participants were asked if they had noticed anything unusual while watching the video.
Across all the tests, approximately 50% of the participants reported seeing nothing out of the ordinary.
But in reality, something oddhadhappened.
Inattentional Blindness vs. Change Blindness
Change blindnessis a similar phenomenon that is closely related to inattentional blindness.
Limited Attentional Resources
The fact is that our attentional and processing capabilities are limited.
This approach is highly economical.
Of course, this is notalwaysthe case.
Limitations of Memory
Some researchers suggest that memory limitations might contribute to inattentional blindness.
Such findings suggest that this might not be intentional blindness as much as it is intentional amnesia.
Factors That Influence Inattentional Blindness
There are certain factors that can affect inattentional blindness.
Age
Evidence also seems to suggest that intentional blindness tends to become worse as people grow older.
For example, not noticing something in your visual environment might lead to accidents whiledrivingor at work.
It has been implicated in traffic accidents.
In the workplace, intentional blindness can also contribute to accidents that affect safety and well-being.
But, in its efforts, visual informationboth important and notcan sometimes get overlooked.
National Safety Council.Understanding distracted driving and inattentional blindness.
Rock I, Mack A.Inattentional Blindness.
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Simons DJ, Chabris CF.Gorillas in our midst: Sustained inattentional blindness for dynamic events.Perception.
2019;81(1):1-11. doi:10.3758/s13414-018-1629-1
American Psychological Association.Sights unseen.
2022;51(2):131-147. doi:10.1177/03010066211072466
Smithsonian Magazine.But did you see the gorilla?
The problem with inattentional blindness.
