The cognitive neuroscience of visual attention

In current conceptualizations of visual attention, selection takes place th rough integrated competition between recurrently connected visual processin g networks. Selection, which facilitates the emergence of a 'winner' from a mong many potential targets, can be associated with particular spatial loca tions or object properties, and it can be modulated by both stimulus-driven and goal-driven factors. Recent neurobiological data support this account, revealing the activation of striate and extrastriate brain regions during conditions of competition. In addition, parietal and temporal cortices play a role in selection, biasing the ultimate outcome of the competition.