Cocktail Party Effect Analysis

How do we selectively listen as in the cocktail party effect?

When hearing the sounds that are all around us, we don’t hear a single complex sound, but a combination of sounds. Hearing a combination of all the sounds occurring around us would be extremely overwhelming and overstimulating if we actually took it all in and heard it in its pure form. Being able to pick out particular sounds is an example of selectively listening. The book gives the example as the cocktail party effect. What this means, is that while at a cocktail party, people are exposed to a variety of sounds like music, and several different conversations. A person would not be listening to all of the conversations and music going on around them, they would be focused in on whatever they were engaged in. This does not mean that someone would be unaware of the multitude of sounds surrounding them, but that they would be selective to listening to the conversation that they are in. Otherwise we would be distracted and overwhelmed by different noises. Another example of selectively listening would be
Although the ability to move seems simple, it actually involves an intricate network of neurons in our brain in spinal cord communicating with the muscles in our body to coordinate smooth, regulated movements. Examples of how our body functions work together to produce smooth movement can be described in something as simple as signing your name on a piece of paper. A person is able to lift up a pen and sign their name in a seemingly effortless manner, without jerking or having odd spasms. We see this as something normal, and expected, but it is actually the product of our brain and body working together to allow us to create movements with such ease. Unfortunately, for some people, things can go wrong within the body and cause disorders of movement. Some of these disorders include Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and autoimmune disorders like Myasthenia gravis and Multiple