The Development of Selective Attention.

This paper is a review of recent research on the developmental course of atten tional processes. Developmental differences in the ability to ignore irrelevant information have been assessed in terms of same/different judgments, speeded classification, selective listening, and incidental learning. Recent research sug gests the presence of both quantitative and qualitative age differences in the operation of selective attention. Each of these paradigms has provided evi dence for a progressive improvement with age in the ability to attend selec tively to specific stimuli. Qualitative differences between older and younger children are manifested in the way each group perceives and organizes incom ing information. It is suggested that more emphasis be given to understanding the basis of interference from irrelevant stimuli when it occurs. This focus, it is hoped, would facilitate the understanding of developmental changes in the degree to which irrelevant stimuli interfere with performance.