Cognitive and attentional processes involved in the Stroop test
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Keywords
Attention, Cognition, Executive Functions, Inhibition, Systematic Review, Stroop Task
Abstract
The purpose of this review is to examine the cognitive and attentional correlates involved in the response to the Stroop task. In order to carry out this review, 911 papers were selected, of which only 11 papers were finally selected, the latter covering a sample of 514 participants -all adults and without manifested psychopathologies-. The results pointed to the strong role of basic executive functions, especially inhibition and working memory as the most important cognitive correlates. In relation to the attentional correlates, activation of both the dorsal and ventral attentional systems was found, although their preponderance was variable depending on the experience and the congruence or incongruence of the stimulus presented. As for the analysis of its components, selective attention was the main component not only at the attentional level but at the total level. Selective attention would act as the first filter, easing the information processing by modulating attention towards the relevant stimulus, which involves focused attention. Sustained and shifting attention were also important in this filtering of information.
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Sergio Sáez Martínez, University of La Rioja, Logroño, Spain
PhD candidate in Education and Psychology at the University of La Rioja. Substitute professor in the Department of Educational Sciences at the University of La Rioja. University of La Rioja, Logroño, Spain.