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Roccato M, Campana G, Vicovaro M, Donato R, Pavan A. Perception of complex Glass patterns through spatial summation across unique frames. Vision Res 2024; 216:108364. [PMID: 38377786 DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2024.108364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024]
Abstract
When processing visual information from the surroundings, human vision depends on the constant integration of form and motion cues. Dynamic Glass patterns (GPs) may be used to study how such visual integration occurs in the human visual system. Dynamic GPs are visual stimuli composed of two or more unique frames consisting of different configurations of dot pairs, called dipoles, presented in rapid succession. Previous psychophysical studies showed that the discrimination of translational and circular dynamic GPs is influenced by both the number of unique frames and the pattern update rate. In this study, we manipulated these two variables to assess their influence on the discrimination threshold of circular, radial, and spiral GPs, partially replicating previous findings on circular GPs. Our results indicate that circular GPs are more easily perceived than radial and spiral GPs, showing lower discrimination thresholds. Furthermore, we found that discrimination thresholds vary as a function of the number of unique frames but not as a function of the pattern update rate. Specifically, coherence thresholds decreased with increasing the number of unique frames. In conclusion, our findings support the existence of spatial summation of form signals coming from the unique frames that generate complex GPs. On the other hand, they do not support temporal integration of local form-motion signals based on the pattern update rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Roccato
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, Italy.
| | - Gianluca Campana
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, Italy; Human Inspired Technology Research Centre, University of Padova, Via Luzzati 4, 35121 Padova, Italy
| | - Michele Vicovaro
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - Rita Donato
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - Andrea Pavan
- Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Viale Berti Pichat 5, 40127 Bologna, Italy
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2
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A comparison of equivalent noise methods in investigating local and global form and motion integration. Atten Percept Psychophys 2023; 85:152-165. [PMID: 36380147 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-022-02595-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Static and dynamic cues within certain spatiotemporal proximity are used to evoke respective global percepts of form and motion. The limiting factors in this process are, first, internal noise, which indexes local orientation/direction detection, and, second, sampling efficiency, which relates to the processing and the representation of global orientation/direction. These parameters are quantified using the equivalent noise (EN) paradigm. EN has been implemented with just two levels: high and low noise. However, when using this simplified version, one must assume the shape of the overall noise dependence, as the intermediate points are missing. Here, we investigated whether two distinct EN methods, the 8-point and the simplified 2-point version, reveal comparable parameter estimates. This was performed for three different types of stimuli: random dot kinematograms, and static and dynamic translational Glass patterns, to investigate how constant internal noise estimates are, and how sampling efficiency might vary over tasks. The results indicated substantial compatibility between estimates over a wide range of external noise levels sampled with eight data points, and a simplified version producing two highly informative data points. Our findings support the use of a simplified procedure to estimate essential form-motion integration parameters, paving the way for rapid and critical applications to populations that cannot tolerate protracted measurements.
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Khatin-Zadeh O, Farsani D, Breda A. How can transforming representation of mathematical entities help us employ more cognitive resources? Front Psychol 2023; 14:1091678. [PMID: 36935991 PMCID: PMC10017447 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1091678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2022] [Accepted: 02/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
This article discusses the cognitive process of transforming one representation of mathematical entities into another representation. This process, which has been called mathematical metaphor, allows us to understand and embody a difficult-to-understand mathematical entity in terms of an easy-to-understand entity. When one representation of a mathematical entity is transformed into another representation, more cognitive resources such as the visual and motor systems can come into play to understand the target entity. Because of their nature, some curves, which are one group of visual representations, may have a great motor strength. It is suggested that directedness, straightness, length, and thinness are some possible features that determine degree of motor strength of a curve. Another possible factor that can determine motor strength of a curve is the strength of association between shape of the curve and past experiences of the observer (and her/his prior knowledge). If an individual has had the repetitive experience of observing objects moving along a certain curve, the shape of the curve may have a great motor strength for her/him. In fact, it can be said that some kind of metonymic relationship may be formed between the shapes of some curves and movement experiences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omid Khatin-Zadeh
- School of Foreign Languages, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Danyal Farsani
- Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
- *Correspondence: Danyal Farsani,
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4
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Mastandrea S, Kennedy JM. Extension of Dancer's Legs: Increasing Angles Show Motion. Front Psychol 2022; 12:706004. [PMID: 35058830 PMCID: PMC8763676 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.706004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Usain Bolt’s Lightning Bolt pose, one arm highly extended to one side, suggests action. Likewise, static pictures of animals, legs extended, show animation. We tested a new cue for motion perception—extension—and in particular extension of dancer’s legs. An experiment with pictures of a dancer finds larger angles between the legs suggest greater movement, especially with in-air poses and in lateral views. Leg positions graded from simply standing to very difficult front and side splits. Liking ratings (a small range) were more related to Difficulty ratings (a large range) than Movement ratings (a moderate range).
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Affiliation(s)
| | - John M Kennedy
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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5
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Castellotti S, Scipioni L, Mastandrea S, Del Viva MM. Pupil responses to implied motion in figurative and abstract paintings. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0258490. [PMID: 34634092 PMCID: PMC8504727 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0258490] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Motion can be perceived in static images, such as photos and figurative paintings, representing realistic subjects in motion, with or without directional information (e.g., motion blur or speed lines). Motion impression can be achieved even in non-realistic static images such as motion illusions and abstract paintings. It has been shown that visual motion processing affects the diameter of the pupil, responding differently to real, illusory, and implied motion in photographs (IM). It has been suggested that these different effects might be due to top-down modulations from different cortical areas underlying their processing. It is worthwhile to investigate pupillary response to figurative paintings, since they require an even higher level of interpretation than photos representing the same kind of subjects, given the complexity of cognitive processes involved in the aesthetic experience. Also, pupil responses to abstract paintings allows to study the effect of IM perception in representations devoid of real-life motion cues. We measured pupil responses to IM in figurative and abstract artworks depicting static and dynamic scenes, as rated by a large group of individuals not participating in the following experiment. Since the pupillary response is modulated by the subjective image interpretation, a motion rating test has been used to correct individual pupil data according to whether participants actually perceived the presence of motion in the paintings. Pupil responses to movies showing figurative and abstract subjects, and to motion illusions were also measured, to compare real and illusory motion with painted IM. Movies, both figurative and abstract, elicit the largest pupillary dilation of all static stimuli, whereas motion illusions cause the smallest pupil size, as previously shown. Interestingly, pupil responses to IM depend on the paintings’ style. Figurative paintings depicting moving subjects cause more dilation than those representing static figures, and pupil size increases with the strength of IM, as already found with realistic photos. The opposite effect is obtained with abstract artworks. Abstract paintings depicting motion produce less dilation than those depicting stillness. In any case, these results reflect the individual subjective perception of dynamism, as the very same paintings can induce opposite responses in observer which interpreted it as static or dynamic. Overall, our data show that pupil size depends on high-level interpretation of motion in paintings, even when they do not represent real-world scenes. Our findings further suggest that the pupil is modulated by multiple top-down cortical mechanisms, involving the processing of motion, attention, memory, imagination, and other cognitive functions necessary for enjoying a complete aesthetic experience.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lisa Scipioni
- Department of Neurofarba, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
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6
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Abstract
Viewing static images depicting movement can result in a motion aftereffect: people tend to categorise direction signals as moving in the opposite direction relative to the implied motion in still photographs. This finding could indicate that inferred motion direction can penetrate sensory processing and change perception. Equally possible, however, is that inferred motion changes decision processes, but not perception. Here we test these two possibilities. Since both categorical decisions and subjective confidence are informed by sensory information, confidence can be informative about whether an aftereffect probably results from changes to perceptual or decision processes. We therefore used subjective confidence as an additional measure of the implied motion aftereffect. In Experiment 1 (implied motion), we find support for decision-level changes only, with no change in subjective confidence. In Experiment 2 (real motion), we find equal changes to decisions and confidence. Our results suggest the implied motion aftereffect produces a bias in decision-making, but leaves perceptual processing unchanged.
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Castellotti S, Francisci C, Del Viva MM. Pupillary response to real, illusory, and implied motion. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0254105. [PMID: 34197536 PMCID: PMC8248605 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0254105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The perception of moving objects (real motion) is a critical function for interacting with a dynamic environment. Motion perception can be also induced by particular structural features of static images (illusory motion) or by photographic images of subjects in motion (implied motion, IM). Many cortical areas are involved in motion processing, particularly the medial temporal cortical area (MT), dedicated to the processing of real, illusory, and implied motion. Recently, there has been a growing interest in the influence of high-level visual processes on pupillary responses. However, just a few studies have measured the effect of motion processing on the pupil, and not always with consistent results. Here we systematically investigate the effects of real, illusory, and implied motion on the pupil diameter for the first time, by showing different types of stimuli (movies, illusions, and photos) with the same average luminance to the same observers. We find different pupillary responses depending on the nature of motion. Real motion elicits a larger pupillary dilation than IM, which in turn induces more dilation than control photos representing static subjects (No-IM). The pupil response is sensitive even to the strength of IM, as photos with enhanced IM (blur, motion streaks, speed lines) induce larger dilation than simple freezed IM (subjects captured in the instant they are moving). Also, the subject represented in the stimulus matters: human figures are interpreted as more dynamic and induce larger dilation than objects/animals. Interestingly, illusory motion induces much less dilation than all the other motion categories, despite being seen as moving. Overall, pupil responses depend on the individual perception of dynamicity, confirming that the pupil is modulated by the subjective interpretation of complex stimuli. We argue that the different pupillary responses to real, illusory, and implied motion reflect the top-down modulations of different cortical areas involved in their processing.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Carlo Francisci
- Department of Neurofarba, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
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8
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Seo J, Kim E, Kim SH. A Directional Congruency Effect of Amplified Dilated Time Perception Induced by Looming Stimuli With Implied Motion Cues. Percept Mot Skills 2021; 128:585-604. [PMID: 33423612 DOI: 10.1177/0031512520987361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The perception of time is not veridical, but, rather, it is susceptible to environmental context, like the intrinsic dynamics of moving stimuli. The direction of motion has been reported to affect time perception such that movement of objects toward an observer (i.e., looming stimuli) is perceived as longer in duration than movement of objects away from the observer (i.e., receding stimuli). In the current study we investigated whether this looming/receding temporal asymmetry can be modulated by the direction of movement implied by static cues of images. Participants were presented with images of a running person, rendered from either the front or the back (i.e., representing movement toward or away from the observer). In Experiment 1, the size of the images was constant. In Experiment 2, the image sizes varied (i.e., increasing: looming; or decreasing: receding). In both experiments, participants performed a temporal bisection task by judging the duration of the image presentation as "short" or "long". In Experiment 1, we found no influence of implied-motion direction in the participants' duration perceptions. In Experiment 2, however, participants overestimated the duration of the looming, as compared to the receding image in relation to real motion. This finding replicated previous findings of the looming/receding asymmetry using naturalistic human-character stimuli. Further, in Experiment 2 we observed a directional congruency effect between real and implied motion; stimuli were perceived as lasting longer when the directions of real and implied motion were congruent versus when these directions were incongruent. Thus, looming (versus receding) movement, a perceptually salient stimulus, elicits differential temporal processing, and higher-order motion processing integrates signals of real and implied motion in time perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joohee Seo
- Department of Psychology, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Euisun Kim
- Department of Psychology, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Sung-Ho Kim
- Department of Psychology, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, South Korea
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Verfaillie K, Daems A. Flexible Orientation Tuning of Visual Representations of Human Body Postures: Evidence From Long-Term Priming. Front Psychol 2020; 11:393. [PMID: 32210896 PMCID: PMC7076911 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00393] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2019] [Accepted: 02/20/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The proficiency of human observers to identify body postures is examined in three experiments. We use a posture decision task in which participants are primed with either anatomically possible or impossible postures (in the latter case the upper and lower body face in opposite directions). In a long-term priming paradigm (i.e., in an initial priming block of trials and a subsequent test phase several minutes later), we manipulate the relation between priming and test postures with respect to the identity of the person in the body postures (Experiment 1), the prototypicality of the depth orientations (Experiment 2), and the variability of the priming orientations (Experiment 3). Reaction time to the test postures is the main dependent variable. In Experiment 1 it is found that priming of postures does not depend on the exact visual appearance of the actor (either same priming and test female or male figure or different figures), supporting the hypothesis that posture priming primarily is determined by the spatial relations between the body parts and much less by characteristics of the person involved. Long-term priming in our paradigm apparently is based on the reactivation of high-level posture representations that make abstraction of the identity of the human figure. In Experiment 2 we observe that privileged or prototypical orientations (e.g., 3/4 views) do not affect long-term priming of body postures. In Experiment 3, we find that increasing or decreasing the variability between the priming and test figures influences reaction time performance. Collectively, these results provide a better understanding of the flexibility (e.g., invariant to identity) and limits (e.g., depending on depth orientation) of the processes supporting human posture recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karl Verfaillie
- Laboratory of Experimental Psychology, Brain and Cognition, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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10
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Sgouramani H, Moutoussis K, Vatakis A. Move Still: The Effects of Implied and Real Motion on the Duration Estimates of Dance Steps. Perception 2019; 48:616-628. [PMID: 31159673 DOI: 10.1177/0301006619854914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
It has been argued that movement can be implied by static cues of images depicting an instance of a dynamic event. Instances of implied motion have been investigated as a special type of stimulus with common processing mechanisms to those of real motion. Timing studies have reported a lengthening of the perceived time for moving as opposed to static stimuli and for stimuli of higher as compared to lower amounts of implied motion. However, the actual comparison of real versus implied motion on timing has never been investigated. In the present study, we compared directly the effect of two hypothetically analogous ballet steps with different amounts of movement and static instances of the dynamic peak of these events in a reproduction task. The analysis revealed an overestimation and lower response variability for real as compared to implied motion stimuli. These findings replicate and extend the apparent duration lengthening for moving as compared to static stimulation, even for static images containing implied motion, questioning whether or not the previously reported correspondence between real and implied motion transfers in the timing domain. This lack of correspondence was further supported by the finding that the amount of movement presented affected only displays of real motion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helena Sgouramani
- Department of Philosophy and History of Science, University of Athens, Athens, Greece
| | | | - Argiro Vatakis
- Department of Psychology, Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences, Athens, Greece
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11
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Schlosser RW, Brock KL, Koul R, Shane H, Flynn S. Does Animation Facilitate Understanding of Graphic Symbols Representing Verbs in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder? JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2019; 62:965-978. [PMID: 30986148 DOI: 10.1044/2018_jslhr-l-18-0243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Purpose The effects of animation on identification of graphic symbols for verbs were studied using the Autism Language Program Graphic Symbols Set in children diagnosed with mild-to-severe autism spectrum disorder between the ages of 3 and 7 years. Method The participants were randomly assigned to an animated symbol condition or a static symbol condition. Static symbols were spliced from the animated symbols to ensure that the symbols differed only in terms of the absence or presence of movement. The participants were asked to identify a target symbol among foils given the spoken label. Results There were no significant differences between the groups with respect to chronological age, autism severity, and receptive target verb knowledge. An independent t test revealed that animated symbols were more readily identified than static symbols. Conclusions Animation enhances the identification of verbs in children with autism spectrum disorder. Clinicians are encouraged to take advantage of animation when introducing graphic symbols representing verbs. Limitations and implications for future research are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ralf W Schlosser
- Departments of Communication Sciences and Disorders and Applied Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA
- Department of Otolaryngology and Communication Enhancement, Boston Children's Hospital, MA
- Faculty of Humanities, Centre for Augmentative and Alternative Communication, University of Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Kris L Brock
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Idaho State University, Pocatello
| | - Rajinder Koul
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Texas at Austin
| | - Howard Shane
- Department of Otolaryngology and Communication Enhancement, Boston Children's Hospital, MA
- Department of Otolaryngology and Communication Enhancement, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
| | - Suzanne Flynn
- Department of Linguistics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
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Riach M, Holmes PS, Franklin ZC, Wright DJ. Observation of an action with a congruent contextual background facilitates corticospinal excitability: A combined TMS and eye-tracking experiment. Neuropsychologia 2018; 119:157-164. [PMID: 30098329 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.08.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2018] [Revised: 07/19/2018] [Accepted: 08/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Action observation produces activity in similar regions of the brain to those involved in action execution and can offer an effective intervention for motor (re)learning, although optimal viewing conditions for such interventions remain to be established. In this experiment, single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and eye-tracking were used simultaneously to investigate the effect of manipulating background context on both corticospinal excitability and visual attention during action observation. Twenty-four participants observed four different videos: (i) a static hand holding a sponge (control condition); and an index finger-thumb pinch of a sponge against (ii) a plain black background; (iii) a background containing objects that were incongruent with the observed action; and (iv) a background containing objects that were congruent with the observed action. TMS was delivered to the hand representation of the left primary motor cortex, and motor evoked potentials were recorded from the first dorsal interosseous and abductor digiti minimi muscles of the right hand. Eye movements were recorded throughout the experiment. Results indicated that corticospinal excitability was facilitated during the congruent context condition compared to both the static hand and plain black background conditions. In addition, the number of fixations and percentage of time participants spent fixating on the background scene were significantly greater during the incongruent and congruent conditions compared to the static hand and plain black background conditions. These results indicate that the provision of additional visual information that is congruent with the observed movement contributes to a facilitation of corticospinal excitability by providing the observer with information regarding the goal and intention of the observed action. Providing congruent contextual information may enhance the efficacy of action observation interventions for motor (re)learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Riach
- Research Centre for Musculoskeletal Science and Sports Medicine, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK.
| | - Paul S Holmes
- Research Centre for Musculoskeletal Science and Sports Medicine, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK
| | - Zoë C Franklin
- Research Centre for Musculoskeletal Science and Sports Medicine, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK
| | - David J Wright
- Research Centre for Musculoskeletal Science and Sports Medicine, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK
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Evaluating the influence of a fixated object's spatio-temporal properties on gaze control. Atten Percept Psychophys 2017; 78:996-1003. [PMID: 26887697 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-016-1072-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Despite recent progress in understanding the factors that determine where an observer will eventually look in a scene, we know very little about what determines how an observer decides where he or she will look next. We investigated the potential roles of object-level representations in the direction of subsequent shifts of gaze. In five experiments, we considered whether a fixated object's spatial orientation, implied motion, and perceived animacy affect gaze direction when shifting overt attention to another object. Eye movements directed away from a fixated object were biased in the direction it faced. This effect was not modified by implying a particular direction of inanimate or animate motion. Together, these results suggest that decisions regarding where one should look next are in part determined by the spatial, but not by the implied temporal, properties of the object at the current locus of fixation.
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14
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Holmin
- Department of Psychology, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota, USA
| | - Shanda Lauer
- Department of Psychology, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota, USA
| | - Mark Nawrot
- Department of Psychology, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota, USA
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15
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Cattaneo Z, Schiavi S, Silvanto J, Nadal M. A TMS study on the contribution of visual area V5 to the perception of implied motion in art and its appreciation. Cogn Neurosci 2015; 8:59-68. [PMID: 26429631 DOI: 10.1080/17588928.2015.1083968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Over the last decade, researchers have sought to understand the brain mechanisms involved in the appreciation of art. Previous studies reported an increased activity in sensory processing regions for artworks that participants find more appealing. Here we investigated the intriguing possibility that activity in cortical area V5-a region in the occipital cortex mediating physical and implied motion detection-is related not only to the generation of a sense of motion from visual cues used in artworks, but also to the appreciation of those artworks. Art-naïve participants viewed a series of paintings and quickly judged whether or not the paintings conveyed a sense of motion, and whether or not they liked them. Triple-pulse TMS applied over V5 while viewing the paintings significantly decreased the perceived sense of motion, and also significantly reduced liking of abstract (but not representational) paintings. Our data demonstrate that V5 is involved in extracting motion information even when the objects whose motion is implied are pictorial representations (as opposed to photographs or film frames), and even in the absence of any figurative content. Moreover, our study suggests that, in the case of untrained people, V5 activity plays a causal role in the appreciation of abstract but not of representational art.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zaira Cattaneo
- a Department of Psychology , University of Milano-Bicocca , Milano , Italy.,b Brain Connectivity Center , C. Mondino National Neurological Institute , Pavia , Italy
| | - Susanna Schiavi
- a Department of Psychology , University of Milano-Bicocca , Milano , Italy
| | - Juha Silvanto
- c Department of Psychology , University of Westminster , London , UK
| | - Marcos Nadal
- d Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods , University of Vienna , Vienna , Austria
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Mather G, Sharman RJ. Decision-level adaptation in motion perception. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2015; 2:150418. [PMID: 27019726 PMCID: PMC4807448 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.150418] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2015] [Accepted: 11/02/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Prolonged exposure to visual stimuli causes a bias in observers' responses to subsequent stimuli. Such adaptation-induced biases are usually explained in terms of changes in the relative activity of sensory neurons in the visual system which respond selectively to the properties of visual stimuli. However, the bias could also be due to a shift in the observer's criterion for selecting one response rather than the alternative; adaptation at the decision level of processing rather than the sensory level. We investigated whether adaptation to implied motion is best attributed to sensory-level or decision-level bias. Three experiments sought to isolate decision factors by changing the nature of the participants' task while keeping the sensory stimulus unchanged. Results showed that adaptation-induced bias in reported stimulus direction only occurred when the participants' task involved a directional judgement, and disappeared when adaptation was measured using a non-directional task (reporting where motion was present in the display, regardless of its direction). We conclude that adaptation to implied motion is due to decision-level bias, and that a propensity towards such biases may be widespread in sensory decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- George Mather
- School of Psychology, College of Social Science, University of Lincoln, Lincoln LN6 7TS, UK
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17
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Probing the involvement of the earliest levels of cortical processing in motion extrapolation with rapid forms of visual motion priming and adaptation. Atten Percept Psychophys 2015; 77:603-12. [PMID: 25388368 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-014-0795-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
In this study, we investigated the effect of brief motion priming and adaptation, occurring at the earliest levels of the cortical visual stream, on time-to-contact (TTC) estimation of a target passing behind an occluder. By using different exposure times of directional motion presented in the occluder area prior to the target's disappearance behind it, our aim was to modulate (prime or adapt) the extrapolated motion of the invisible target, thus producing different TTC estimates. Our results showed that longer (yet subsecond) exposures to motion in the same direction as the target produced late TTC estimates, whereas shorter exposures produced shorter TTC estimates, indicating that rapid forms of motion adaptation and motion priming affect extrapolated motion. Our findings suggest that motion extrapolation might occur at the earliest levels of cortical processing of motion, at which these rapid mechanisms of priming and adaptation take place.
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Kohler PJ, Cavanagh P, Tse PU. Motion-induced position shifts are influenced by global motion, but dominated by component motion. Vision Res 2015; 110:93-9. [DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2015.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2014] [Revised: 02/27/2015] [Accepted: 03/08/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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Forms of momentum across space: Representational, operational, and attentional. Psychon Bull Rev 2014; 21:1371-403. [DOI: 10.3758/s13423-014-0624-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Mather G, Pavan A, Bellacosa Marotti R, Campana G, Casco C. Interactions between motion and form processing in the human visual system. Front Comput Neurosci 2013; 7:65. [PMID: 23730286 PMCID: PMC3657629 DOI: 10.3389/fncom.2013.00065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2012] [Accepted: 05/02/2013] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The predominant view of motion and form processing in the human visual system assumes that these two attributes are handled by separate and independent modules. Motion processing involves filtering by direction-selective sensors, followed by integration to solve the aperture problem. Form processing involves filtering by orientation-selective and size-selective receptive fields, followed by integration to encode object shape. It has long been known that motion signals can influence form processing in the well-known Gestalt principle of common fate; texture elements which share a common motion property are grouped into a single contour or texture region. However, recent research in psychophysics and neuroscience indicates that the influence of form signals on motion processing is more extensive than previously thought. First, the salience and apparent direction of moving lines depends on how the local orientation and direction of motion combine to match the receptive field properties of motion-selective neurons. Second, orientation signals generated by "motion-streaks" influence motion processing; motion sensitivity, apparent direction and adaptation are affected by simultaneously present orientation signals. Third, form signals generated by human body shape influence biological motion processing, as revealed by studies using point-light motion stimuli. Thus, form-motion integration seems to occur at several different levels of cortical processing, from V1 to STS.
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Affiliation(s)
- George Mather
- School of Psychology, University of Lincoln Lincoln, UK
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Pavan A, Baggio G. Linguistic representations of motion do not depend on the visual motion system. Psychol Sci 2013; 24:181-8. [PMID: 23300229 DOI: 10.1177/0956797612450882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Embodied semantics proposes that constructing the meaning of motion verb phrases relies on representations of motion in sensory cortex. However, the data reported by earlier studies as evidence for this claim are also explained by a symbolic-semantics view proposing interactions between dissociable systems. In the experiments reported here, participants were visually adapted to real and implied leftward or rightward motion, which produced a motion aftereffect opposite to the direction of the adapting stimulus. Participants then decided whether a directionally ambiguous or a leftward- or rightward-directional verb phrase implied leftward or rightward motion. Because the visual system is engaged in the motion aftereffect, embodied semantics predicts that responses in the motion-aftereffect direction (opposite to the direction of the adapting stimulus) are facilitated, whereas symbolic semantics predicts response facilitation in the direction of the adapting stimulus (opposite to the direction of the motion aftereffect). We found response facilitation in the direction of real- and implied-motion adapting stimuli in ambiguous and directional verb phrases. These results suggest that visual and linguistic representations of motion can be dissociated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Pavan
- International School for Advanced Studies, Trieste, Italy. apavan@sissa
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