Attention: An information design perspective

We do not become conscious of all the stimuli detected by our sensory organs. The selective process that controls our awareness of events in the environment is called attention. The process of attention determines which events we become conscious of. Attention may be controlled (1) automatically, (2) by instructions, and (3) by the specific demands of the particular task at hand. The information designer may use various design principles and guidelines in order to facilitate the reader’s attention processes, and subsequent processes for understanding and learning.