Search

In this chapter, the experimental paradigms traditionally used to evaluate perceptual inhibition, and therefore selective attention, were briefly presented: The Stroop, Flanks, and Conjunction Visual Search paradigms. The Conjunction Visual Search paradigm was analyzed in greater detail, and the main studies in recent years that use it as a measure of perceptual inhibition in one or more stages of the life cycle were shown. At the same time, the methodological limitations of these works were raised: the scarcity of studies that address the analysis of the development of the process throughout the life course and the diversity in the use of paradigms to evaluate the same process in different evolutionary stages.

This chapter addresses the inhibitory processing training. The topic is analyzed placing the emphasis on the process-based approach (e.g., predominant in executive functions training). Special emphasis is also placed on inhibitory training during childhood. Reference is made to both theoretical aspects (theoretical model and inhibitory processes addressed) and practical aspects (transfer effects of training). The authors review studies of specific inhibitory training, which meet certain methodological requirements (e.g., random designs with at least two groups and pre- and post-test measurements). The approach of these studies allowed the authors to (1) extract some ideas about the current work in this field (as the taking of a non-unitary perspective of inhibition and the use of computerized experimental tasks); (2) highlight the need for further study, as data on training transfer are not conclusive; and (3) discuss possible fundamental future lines of work.

In the present chapter, the authors analyze of the relations between inhibitory processes, selective attention, and the executive processes responsible for self-regulation. They describe the multidimensional model of inhibition with special emphasis on the unique functional and operative features of perceptual inhibition, in contrast with cognitive and response inhibitions. Likewise, they analyze the role of selective attention and self-regulation processes. Moreover, they describe the procedures and paradigms currently used for each inhibitory process assessment and outline the importance of including them as part of the evaluation and intervention processes in the different scenarios of psychological practice.

Currently, inhibition is considered one of the main executive functions responsible for stopping or attenuating the interference generated by prepotent tendencies linked to emotion, thought, or behavior that can interfere with the achievement of objectives. The study of inhibitory functioning has been focused more on neutral (or also called cold) contexts. However, real-world problems are often completely permeated with emotions or emotional signals that different inhibitory processes must suppress or attenuate. Although some studies have been reported on inhibitory functioning with emotional stimuli, the results are contradictory and have not even analyzed this question from a multidimensional inhibition perspective. For these reasons, this chapter addresses inhibitory control processes from a multidimensional perspective in both neutral and emotional contexts. The main theoretical proposals that provide explanations in this regard, experimental evaluation methods, and new lines of work are discussed.