Tracking Moment-to-Moment Attention: Behavioural Oscillations As Objective Markers of Rhythmic Attentional Lapses

Sustained attention fluctuates rhythmically, especially in the theta range, impacting performance. This study used an image Flanker task and response time variability to classify attentional states as in-zone or out-of-zone. Behavioural measures reliably tracked lapses, unlike self-reports. FFT analyses linked rhythmic attention lapses to greater instability and reduced accuracy.