Fluctuating Minds: Spontaneous Psychophysical Variability during Mind-Wandering.
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 26863144.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0147174 and PMC identifier 4749381.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Mind-wandering is the occasional distraction we experience while performing a cognitive task. It arises without any external precedent, varies over time, and interferes with the processing of sensory information. Here, we asked whether the transition from the on-task state to mind-wandering is a gradual process or an abrupt event. We developed a new experimental approach, based on the continuous, online assessment of individual psychophysical performance. Probe questions were asked whenever response times (RTs) exceeded 2 standard deviations from the participant's average RT. Results showed that mind-wandering reports were generally preceded by slower RTs, as compared to trials preceding on-task reports. Mind-wandering episodes could be reliably predicted from the response time difference between the last and the second-to-last trials. Thus, mind-wandering reports follow an abrupt increase in behavioral variability, lasting between 2.5 and 10 seconds.
Medical subject headings
- Attention
- Psychomotor Performance
- Thinking