Modeling Structure and Dynamics of Selective Attention

We present a cognitive architecture that includes perception, memory, attention, decision making, and action. The model is formulated in terms of an abstract dynamics for the activations of features, their binding into object entities, semantic categorization as well as related memories and appropriate reactions. The dynamical variables interact in a connectionist network which is shown to be adaptable to a variety of experimental paradigms. We find that selective attention can be modeled by means of inhibitory processes and by a threshold dynamics. The model is applied to the problem of disambiguating a number of theories for negative priming, an effect that is studied in connection to selective attention