<p>The psychological refractory period (PRP) paradigm has been used extensively to investigate the cognitive processing stages involved in dual-task performance. Interpretations of PRP data have often attributed the difficulty in simultaneously performing two cognitive tasks to a strict serial processing bottleneck in the response selection stage. However, a number of studies have also demonstrated backward response compatibility effects (BCEs) on Task 1 reaction time in dual-task performance, which suggest that response information for Task 2 may be activated in parallel with Task 1 response selection. The goal of this thesis was to examine the nature of the Task 2 processing that operates in parallel with Task 1 response selection in a PRP task, and to consider the implications of this parallel processing for models of dual-task performance. The results of the empirical studies presented here provide converging evidence that the BCE represents automatically activated response information for Task 2 acting on Task 1 response selection. This Task 2 response information can also contribute to Task 2 performance. Models of dual-task performance must account for both the parallel activation of response information and the serial selection of a response for each task.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:mcmaster.ca/oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/15298 |
| Date | 01 September 2014 |
| Creators | Thomson, Sandra J. |
| Contributors | Watter, Scott, Psychology |
| Source Sets | McMaster University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | dissertation |
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