What is selective attention?
This is the ability to select and focus on what we attend to. With it we block out or shut down input that is unnecessary or should be ignored. This capability keeps our brain from experiencing overload. Autistic children, for example, do not have this normal capability. To keep from being overloaded, they shut down or shut out input and withdraw from a world that typically offers massive stimulation. In a similar manner, automobile drivers can focus their visual attention more fully in heavy traffic if they reduce their auditory input (turn off the car radio).
