Freddy is looking for his girlfriend in a large crowd of people. Because he is so focused on finding her, he fails to notice when a man in a clown costume walks by, despite looking directly at him. This is an example of:
A) a feature detection failure.
B) sensory overload.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) inattentional blindness.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

This scenario fits the definition of inattentional blindness, which is the failure to perceive a fully-visible, but unexpected stimulus when attention is focused elsewhere. In this case, Freddy's attention is focused on finding his girlfriend, causing him to overlook the man in the clown costume.

Freddy Is Looking for His Girlfriend in a Large Crowd