Definition and research guide
This page combines a MeSH definition, publication statistics and selected research abstracts. It is a starting point for reading the literature, not a medical textbook or a systematic evidence review.
Content available: 3 complete abstracts (606 words), 9 references. Full article text is not stored or reproduced here; follow the PMID, DOI or PMC links to read the original sources and their access terms.
Definition
Focusing on certain aspects of current experience to the exclusion of others. It is the act of heeding or taking notice or concentrating.
Definition: NLM Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) scope note (Public domain (U.S. National Library of Medicine); attribution requested). View the MeSH record.
Also known as: Focus of Attention; Attention Focus; Mental Concentration; Concentration, Mental; Social Attention; Attention, Social; Selective Attention; Attention, Selective.
Where it fits in the MeSH classification
- Broader topics
- Arousal
- Narrower topics
- Attentional Bias
Research landscape
PubMed indexes 95,180 records tagged with the MeSH heading “Attention” (counts retrieved 2026-10-31). 16,740 of them (17.6%) were published from 2020 onward, and the busiest period so far is 2010-2019 with 33,917 records.
Reviews account for 5,974 records (6.3%) and meta-analyses for 617. Randomized controlled trials number 5,353 (5.6%) as a share of all records on the topic.
Show the data
| Period | Records |
|---|---|
| through 1999 | 22,310 |
| 2000-2009 | 22,213 |
| 2010-2019 | 33,917 |
| 2020 onward | 16,740 |
Publication-type chart data
| Type | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews | 5,974 | 6.3% |
| Meta-analyses | 617 | 0.6% |
| Randomized controlled trials | 5,353 | 5.6% |
Method: PubMed query "Attention"[MeSH Terms] with publication-type and date filters, retrieved 2026-10-31.
Reading the evidence in psychiatry and psychology
Research on mental health and behaviour relies on questionnaires, interviews and rating scales rather than physical measurements, so how a condition was defined and measured shapes every result. Many studies are observational or small, placebo responses can be large, and findings in one group or culture may not carry over to another. Nothing on this page is advice about diagnosis or treatment; anyone worried about their mental health should talk to a qualified clinician. Check how outcomes were measured, who took part and how long they were followed.
Evidence from open-access studies
These open-access studies come from PubMed’s best-match results for this heading (papers whose main topic it is), ranked here by citation count, with one recent addition. Each abstract is reproduced in full under its recorded open licence so that you can read the authors’ own words. They illustrate the literature; they are not a systematic summary of it. Citation counts measure attention, not reliability or clinical benefit.
| Study / authors | Year | Source label / design | Europe PMC citations | Licence / source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microstate Dynamics of Focused Attention Meditation | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 4 | cc by PMID 42029842 · DOI · PMC13109216 |
| Cortical Contributions to Attentional Orienting and Response Cancellation in Action Stopping | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 3 | cc by PMID 42704230 · DOI · PMC13548964 |
| Sleepiness and attention in sleep-clinic patients and their associations with apnea severity and treatment | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 2 | cc by PMID 42143582 · DOI · PMC13357509 |
Microstate Dynamics of Focused Attention Meditation [1]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Focused-attention meditation provides a tractable model for examining how large-scale brain dynamics support attention and self-regulation.
- Closing excerpt
- Together, these results indicate that focused-attention meditation reorganizes the temporal architecture of large-scale brain dynamics by downregulating microstate patterns associated with self-referential and memory-based processing while enhancing neural states supporting attentional stability and internal monitoring.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (161 words)
Focused-attention meditation provides a tractable model for examining how large-scale brain dynamics support attention and self-regulation. Using high-density EEG microstate analysis, we investigated how focused-attention meditation on the breath (Ānāpānasati) modulates intrinsic brain activity in 22 experienced practitioners, compared with baseline rest and deliberate mental imagery. Five canonical microstate classes (A-E) were identified. Meditation produced a robust reduction of Microstate C across coverage, duration, and occurrence, accompanied by increased presence of Microstates D and E (all Microstate x Condition interactions p < 0.0001). Source localization revealed that Microstate C was generated primarily in medial and lateral temporal regions including the hippocampus and parahippocampal cortex, whereas Microstate D involved posterior midline regions including the posterior cingulate cortex and precuneus, and Microstate E engaged frontoparietal and orbitolimbic networks. Together, these results indicate that focused-attention meditation reorganizes the temporal architecture of large-scale brain dynamics by downregulating microstate patterns associated with self-referential and memory-based processing while enhancing neural states supporting attentional stability and internal monitoring.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 42029842 · DOI · PMC13109216
Cortical Contributions to Attentional Orienting and Response Cancellation in Action Stopping [2]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Action cancellation involves the termination of planned or ongoing movement, likely initiated in the cortex by the pre-supplementary motor area (preSMA) and inferior frontal gyrus (IFG).
- Closing excerpt
- These findings advance understanding of some of the neurophysiological dynamics involved in action cancellation and highlight the utility of combining fNIRS with EMG in this domain.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (203 words)
Action cancellation involves the termination of planned or ongoing movement, likely initiated in the cortex by the pre-supplementary motor area (preSMA) and inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). It is frequently examined using the stop-signal task; electromyography (EMG) studies have shown action cancellation (in stop trials) can involve the partial activation of the responding muscles, which does not result in an overt behavioral response. The neural correlates of these partial responses are not well understood. Here, we combined functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and EMG to examine the neural correlates of terminated actions (partial responses) in a response- and stimulus-selective stop signal task, controlling for attentional confounds by comparing neural activity in stop and ignore trials. fNIRS analyses revealed increased preSMA activity in successful stop compared to ignore trials, but no such differences in the IFG, consistent with postulations that the preSMA is involved uniquely in action cancellation, while the IFG responds generically to unexpected stimuli. Critically, preSMA activity was greater in trials without partial muscle activation, potentially due to proactive inhibitory processes pre-emptively suppressing motor output in these trials. These findings advance understanding of some of the neurophysiological dynamics involved in action cancellation and highlight the utility of combining fNIRS with EMG in this domain.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 42704230 · DOI · PMC13548964
Sleepiness and attention in sleep-clinic patients and their associations with apnea severity and treatment [3]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Study objectivesExcessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) is common in patients with sleep disorders, particularly obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
- Closing excerpt
- While the ESS is commonly used, further research is needed to determine if the PVT should also be incorporated into clinical practice.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (242 words)
Study objectivesExcessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) is common in patients with sleep disorders, particularly obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) and the Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) are often used to measure sleepiness and attention/vigilance, respectively. However, whether these measures are correlated and their relationship to OSA severity/treatment remains understudied. This study examined these associations in a sleep center population.MethodsWe performed a prospective study of 165 participants (119 [72.1%] with diagnosed OSA) presenting to a sleep disorders clinic and completing ESS and PVT. Associations among ESS, PVT, OSA severity, and positive airway pressure (PAP) usage and efficacy were examined using Pearson's correlations, unadjusted and controlling for age, sex, and body mass index.ResultsResults showed no significant correlations between ESS and PVT measures of attention/vigilance. While higher ESS scores correlated with more severe apnea-hypopnea indices in patients with OSA, no association was found with OSA severity and PVT measures. Among participants using PAP, greater hours/night of usage was associated with lower ESS scores, but not with better PVT performance.ConclusionsWe found no association between sleepiness on the ESS and attention/vigilance on PVT among a sleep center population. ESS scores tracked more closely to OSA severity/treatment than PVT measures. The findings suggest that the sleepiness measured by the ESS and measures of sustained attention under monotonous conditions from the PVT capture distinct symptoms. While the ESS is commonly used, further research is needed to determine if the PVT should also be incorporated into clinical practice.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 42143582 · DOI · PMC13357509
Key reviews and meta-analyses
The most cited review-type papers among PubMed’s best-match results for this heading, listed with bibliographic details only. Follow the links for the full text and access terms.
- Research article Threat-related attentional bias in anxious and nonanxious individuals: a meta-analytic study [4]
- Research article Self-referential processing in our brain--a meta-analysis of imaging studies on the self [5]
- Research article A meta-analysis of the impact of short-term sleep deprivation on cognitive variables [6]
- Research article Dealing with feeling: a meta-analysis of the effectiveness of strategies derived from the process model of emotion regulation [7]
- Research article Pseudoneglect: a review and meta-analysis of performance factors in line bisection tasks [8]
- Research article Eye tracking of attention in the affective disorders: a meta-analytic review and synthesis [9]
Full-text reviews on EvidenceLib
Open-access review articles about this topic, reproduced in full with authors, licence and references.
Methylphenidate for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in adults: a narrative review
Rafał R Jaeschke, Ewelina Sujkowska, Magdalena Sowa-Kućma · Psychopharmacology 2021 · CC BY 4.0
A consensus statement on detection of hippocampal sharp wave ripples and differentiation from other fast oscillations
Anli A. Liu, Simon Henin, Saman Abbaspoor et al. · Nature Communications 2022 · CC BY 4.0
The Potential Influence of the Bacterial Microbiome on the Development and Progression of ADHD
Stephanie Bull-Larsen, M. Hasan Mohajeri · Nutrients 2019 · CC BY 4.0
References
- Ngo C, Bek E, Stasytytė M, Newman LA, Elizalde R, Kanthi A, et al.. Microstate Dynamics of Focused Attention Meditation. . 2026. PMID 42029842 · DOI · PMC13109216
- Kemp SA, Salomoni S, Bazin PL, Pash L, St George RJ, Hinder MR. Cortical Contributions to Attentional Orienting and Response Cancellation in Action Stopping. . 2026. PMID 42704230 · DOI · PMC13548964
- Schwab A, Keenan BT, Nowalk NC, Basner M, Bae CJ. Sleepiness and attention in sleep-clinic patients and their associations with apnea severity and treatment. . 2026. PMID 42143582 · DOI · PMC13357509
- Bar-Haim Y, Lamy D, Pergamin L, Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ, van IJzendoorn MH. Threat-related attentional bias in anxious and nonanxious individuals: a meta-analytic study. Psychol Bull. 2007. PMID 17201568 · DOI
- Northoff G, Heinzel A, de Greck M, Bermpohl F, Dobrowolny H, Panksepp J. Self-referential processing in our brain--a meta-analysis of imaging studies on the self. Neuroimage. 2006. PMID 16466680 · DOI
- Lim J, Dinges DF. A meta-analysis of the impact of short-term sleep deprivation on cognitive variables. Psychol Bull. 2010. PMID 20438143 · DOI · PMC3290659
- Webb TL, Miles E, Sheeran P. Dealing with feeling: a meta-analysis of the effectiveness of strategies derived from the process model of emotion regulation. Psychol Bull. 2012. PMID 22582737 · DOI
- Jewell G, McCourt ME. Pseudoneglect: a review and meta-analysis of performance factors in line bisection tasks. Neuropsychologia. 2000. PMID 10617294 · DOI
- Armstrong T, Olatunji BO. Eye tracking of attention in the affective disorders: a meta-analytic review and synthesis. Clin Psychol Rev. 2012. PMID 23059623 · DOI · PMC3556338
About this article
- Sources
- NLM Medical Subject Headings (definition, synonyms); NCBI PubMed (counts, identifiers); Europe PMC (open-access abstracts and citation counts).
- Verification
- Every reference was resolved against PubMed on 2026-11-04; title, year and DOI matched.
- Review state
- automated source verified; no human expert review has been recorded yet.
- Version
- 1, last updated 2026-11-04.
See how EvidenceLib is built. Spotted an error? Email support@evidencehelix.com.
Evidence strength
EvidenceHelix's computed view of the study designs behind this topic: how common meta-analyses, randomized trials and reviews are, how recent the literature is, and a plain-language reading. It describes the design mix of the literature. It is not a quality appraisal of any study, and it is not medical advice.