Mental refocusing

  Research has shown that humans have quite a limited attention span. It amounts on average to approximately seven ‘bits’ of information. So, for example, if we are asked to remember a series of digits in a telephone number, the average person can usually remember seven. Some people can remember one or two more than this and others fewer, but on average it is seven. This is important since although we are constantly being bombarded by hundreds of bits of information from all sensory modalities (sight, sound, taste, touch and smell), we can selectively and consciously pay attention to only a small number of them. The ones that we select are those which we perceive to be most important or relevant to us and the rest are processed unconsciously and go by unnoticed. To illustrate an example of selective attention, imagine that you are at a party and deep in conversation with someone. You are so engrossed that you do not notice what else is going on around you. However, you suddenly hear your name mentioned in a conversation nearby and immediately you switch your attention to that conversation. Why and how can this happen? It happens because your brain is geared up to selectively pay attention to those bits of information that are most relevant and important to you. However, your brain must have been unconsciously processing lots of other incoming information in order to be able to switch attention in this way.

When people are under stress they are hypervigilant to incoming information that signals threat or danger and get into the habit of focusing most (if not all) their conscious attention span to such stimuli. Mental refocusing techniques can be used to train the individual to shift their focus of attention away from the distressing stimuli to neutral or positive ones. One example of mental refocusing is the attention shift exercise. For example, some people experiencing stress may show an attention bias towards internal bodily sensations and symptoms rather than stimuli in their external environment. The purpose of attention training in this context would thus be to shift attention away from focusing on the self towards external, more neutral environmental cues. This change of focus can ultimately result in a reduction in stress in that individual. Exercises can also focus on shifting attention between the five sensory modalities (i.e., sight, sound, smell, taste and touch), or between tasks within a particular sensory modality. To illustrate this you can try the little experiment below for yourself.

A MENTAL REFOCUSING EXERCISE

  Begin by focusing your attention on the ticking of the clock in your room. Before being instructed to do this, you may not have even noticed that the clock was ticking. It does not have to be a clock since any sound source will suffice for this experiment. You will notice that once you pay attention to the sound, it seems to get louder. Do this for a couple of minutes before switching your attention to another sound in the room such as the hum of the refrigerator, the fluorescent light or the boiler. While you are paying attention to the second sound source, you will no longer be able to listen to the first one (i.e., the clock). Do this for a couple of minutes. Now notice the sounds coming from outside of the room such as people talking, cars passing by or perhaps the sound of an ambulance siren in the distance? And pay attention to one of these. If you practise these attention training exercises regularly over a period of time, you will become more skilled at shifting your attention. Research has found that attention training can be effective in reducing stress if practised at least twice a day over a period of six months.