Posner Cueing Paradigm

The Posner Cueing Paradigm is a psychological experiment used to study how attention works. In it, a person sees a screen with a central point and cues—signals that hint where a target (like a dot) will appear. Sometimes the cue correctly predicts the target's location (valid cue), and sometimes it doesn't (invalid cue). People respond faster when the cue accurately indicates where the target will be, demonstrating how attention can be directed voluntarily or automatically. This paradigm helps scientists understand how our attention is focused and shifts in response to cues.