Latent Factors Underlying Individual Differences in Attention Measures Perceptual and Executive Attention

Following theoretical considerations that relate attention to perception and also to the executive control of performance in complex tasks (Bundesen, 1990; Logan & Gordon, 2001), two latent factors underlying individual differences in attention measures are assumed: Perceptual attention and Executive attention. The included attention measures are derived from the neuropsychology-based attention model by Sturm and Zimmermann (2000), the action-oriented five-component model by Neumann (1992), and the working memory model according to Baddeley (1986). Furthermore, one psychometric attention measure (Moosbrugger & Goldhammer, 2005) was selected. A sample of 232 students aged between 19 and 40 completed a test battery of 11 attention and concentration tests. For investigating the appropriateness of the hypothesized two-factor structure, confirmatory factor models, including Perceptual attention and Executive attention as latent factors, were tested. The results support the two-factor structure and, thereby, the hypothesis, that perceptual and executive attention are major factors underlying individual differences in attention measures.

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