Barry R J
Department of Psychology, University of Wollongong, Australia.
Acta Neurobiol Exp (Wars). 1996;56(1):469-84. doi: 10.55782/ane-1996-1150.
A brief overview of the history of the orienting reflex (OR) in western psychology is presented, in order to provide a context for a discussion of its role in attentional processing. Some aspects of observed response fractionation are discussed, leading to an outline of a coherent theory of preliminary processes in OR elicitation. This discriminates between involuntary and voluntary aspects of cognitive processing but depends on a common core mechanism. The role of state variables in modulating phasic responses is also discussed. Although this theory was developed largely from a study of autonomic responses, it has been possible to extend it to include various central measures, and recent extensions are described. A number of recent studies are briefly outlined to provide examples demonstrating the use of a range of physiological measures (central and peripheral) in a variety of situations (from pistol range to the laboratory) with different subject groups (adults, children and psychiatric patients). Finally, the use of heart rate data in the investigation of task-relevant cognitive load is discussed as a relatively simple but sensitive index to explore drug and other effects in cognition. These examples indicate the wide-ranging potential benefits of using psychophysiological approaches in the study of cognitive processes.
本文简要概述了西方心理学中定向反射（OR）的历史，以便为讨论其在注意加工中的作用提供背景。文中讨论了观察到的反应分离的一些方面，进而勾勒出一个关于OR诱发初步过程的连贯理论轮廓。该理论区分了认知加工的非自愿和自愿方面，但依赖于一个共同的核心机制。还讨论了状态变量在调节相位反应中的作用。尽管该理论主要是从对自主反应的研究中发展而来的，但已有可能将其扩展到包括各种中枢测量指标，文中描述了最近的扩展情况。简要概述了一些近期研究，以举例说明在各种不同情境（从射击场到实验室）中，针对不同受试群体（成人、儿童和精神科患者），使用一系列生理测量指标（中枢和外周）的情况。最后，讨论了心率数据在与任务相关的认知负荷研究中的应用，它是一种相对简单但敏感的指标，可用于探索药物及其他对认知的影响。这些例子表明了在认知过程研究中使用心理生理学方法具有广泛的潜在益处。
