Focused Attention Activities

Focused attention is often influenced by these different motivators:

• Personal: If the stimulus evokes a dopamine or oxytocin release in our brain, we are more likely to pay attention to it. Additionally,  We’re more likely to pay attention to a stimulus correctly when we are awake and cheerful rather than tired or sad.
• Environmental: When an individual is not in an overstimulated environment, the desire to concentrate on a stimulus increases. The greater the intensity of stimuli, the less likely an individual will focus.
• Stimulus: If the stimulus has any of the following characteristics: novelty, complexity, duration, or salience, it is less likely to be paid attention to. If it is a singular stimulus, it will be easier for an individual to focus on.

Additionally, individuals who want to practice working on focused attention skills should work on all of the sub-sets of attention: sustained, selective, and divided. By exercising each one of these subsets, an individual may be able to increase their overall focusing ability.