In the context of cognitive psychology, inattentional blindness can best be described as:

• A. Being unable to distinguish between different sensory modalities
• B. Confusing two similar memories when trying to retrieve information
• C. Failing to notice a visible stimulus because attention is focused elsewhere
• D. Temporarily losing the ability to recall information due to stress

Answer: (C)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Understand the concept of inattentional blindness within cognitive psychology. It refers to a phenomenon where an individual fails to perceive an unexpected stimulus in plain sight because their attention is engaged on another task or object.
2. Step 2: Review each option carefully and relate it to the definition of inattentional blindness. For example, distinguish between sensory modality confusion, memory retrieval errors, and attention-related perception failures.
3. Step 3: Identify that 'failing to notice a visible stimulus because attention is focused elsewhere' directly aligns with the core idea of inattentional blindness, which is about attention and perception rather than memory or sensory confusion.
4. Step 4: Recognize that the other options describe different psychological phenomena: inability to distinguish sensory modalities relates to sensory processing, confusing memories relates to memory errors, and temporary recall loss due to stress relates to stress effects on memory.
5. Step 5: Conclude that the best description of inattentional blindness is the failure to notice a visible stimulus due to focused attention elsewhere, as this matches the established cognitive psychology definition.