The ability to select sensory information in our environment is key to facilitating goal-directed actions. Sensory selection mechanisms are prevalent in all sensory modalities, and can be implemented by enhancing information at the relevant location and/or suppressing neural information outside the focus of attention (a mechanism known as distractor suppression). Although we have a decent understanding of how the brain enhances information within the focus of attention, less is known about the mechanisms that mediate suppression of distractors, especially in sensory modalities outside vision. In this study, we conducted a series of behavioral experiments to investigate the spatial flexibility of distractor suppression mechanisms in touch. Our aim was to understand how distractor suppression is spatially deployed in the hand, determine the spatial resolution of this suppression, and examine how anticipating a relevant or irrelevant location impacts performance. To explore these questions, we conducted three experiments using variations of a vibrotactile discrimination task. Unexpectedly, the results indicated that certain distractors arrangements spatially close to the relevant location decrease discriminability as the information may be integrated together. Further investigation is needed to determine whether these effects are due to attentional, perceptual, or decisional processes.
","abstract_html":"<p>The ability to select sensory information in our environment is key to facilitating goal-directed actions. Sensory selection mechanisms are prevalent in all sensory modalities, and can be implemented by enhancing information at the relevant location and/or suppressing neural information outside the focus of attention (a mechanism known as distractor suppression). Although we have a decent understanding of how the brain enhances information within the focus of attention, less is known about the mechanisms that mediate suppression of distractors, especially in sensory modalities outside vision. In this study, we conducted a series of behavioral experiments to investigate the spatial flexibility of distractor suppression mechanisms in touch. Our aim was to understand how distractor suppression is spatially deployed in the hand, determine the spatial resolution of this suppression, and examine how anticipating a relevant or irrelevant location impacts performance. To explore these questions, we conducted three experiments using variations of a vibrotactile discrimination task. Unexpectedly, the results indicated that certain distractors arrangements spatially close to the relevant location decrease discriminability as the information may be integrated together. Further investigation is needed to determine whether these effects are due to attentional, perceptual, or decisional processes.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Serino, Nicole A"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts (M.A.)","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Robert Melara","Manuel Gomez-Ramirez"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2024,"date_issued":"2024-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2024-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:58:07Z","subjects":["Attention","Selective Attention","Distractor Suppression","Tactile Modality","Haptic Perception","Cognition and Perception","Cognitive Science"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cc_etds_theses/1165","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Robert Melara","Manuel Gomez-Ramirez"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Serino, Nicole A"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2024-05-23T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts (M.A.)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Attention","Selective Attention","Distractor Suppression","Tactile Modality","Haptic Perception","Cognition and Perception","Cognitive Science"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cc_etds_theses/1165"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The ability to select sensory information in our environment is key to facilitating goal-directed actions. Sensory selection mechanisms are prevalent in all sensory modalities, and can be implemented by enhancing information at the relevant location and/or suppressing neural information outside the focus of attention (a mechanism known as distractor suppression). Although we have a decent understanding of how the brain enhances information within the focus of attention, less is known about the mechanisms that mediate suppression of distractors, especially in sensory modalities outside vision. In this study, we conducted a series of behavioral experiments to investigate the spatial flexibility of distractor suppression mechanisms in touch. Our aim was to understand how distractor suppression is spatially deployed in the hand, determine the spatial resolution of this suppression, and examine how anticipating a relevant or irrelevant location impacts performance. To explore these questions, we conducted three experiments using variations of a vibrotactile discrimination task. Unexpectedly, the results indicated that certain distractors arrangements spatially close to the relevant location decrease discriminability as the information may be integrated together. Further investigation is needed to determine whether these effects are due to attentional, perceptual, or decisional processes.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Exploring Spatial Operations of Distractor Suppression in the Sense of Touch"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Robert Melara","Manuel Gomez-Ramirez"],"dc:creator":["Serino, Nicole A"],"dc:date.available":["2024-05-23T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The ability to select sensory information in our environment is key to facilitating goal-directed actions. Sensory selection mechanisms are prevalent in all sensory modalities, and can be implemented by enhancing information at the relevant location and/or suppressing neural information outside the focus of attention (a mechanism known as distractor suppression). Although we have a decent understanding of how the brain enhances information within the focus of attention, less is known about the mechanisms that mediate suppression of distractors, especially in sensory modalities outside vision. In this study, we conducted a series of behavioral experiments to investigate the spatial flexibility of distractor suppression mechanisms in touch. Our aim was to understand how distractor suppression is spatially deployed in the hand, determine the spatial resolution of this suppression, and examine how anticipating a relevant or irrelevant location impacts performance. To explore these questions, we conducted three experiments using variations of a vibrotactile discrimination task. Unexpectedly, the results indicated that certain distractors arrangements spatially close to the relevant location decrease discriminability as the information may be integrated together. Further investigation is needed to determine whether these effects are due to attentional, perceptual, or decisional processes.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cc_etds_theses/1165"],"dc:subject":["Attention","Selective Attention","Distractor Suppression","Tactile Modality","Haptic Perception","Cognition and Perception","Cognitive Science"],"dc:title":["Exploring Spatial Operations of Distractor Suppression in the Sense of Touch"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Psychology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts (M.A.)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:58:07Z"}