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Lou H, Lorist MM, Pilz KS. Variability in the temporal dynamics of object-based attentional selection. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0294252. [PMID: 37976325 PMCID: PMC10656001 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0294252] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 10/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Our attention can be directed to specific locations in our visual field (space-based attention), or to specific objects (object-based attention). However, object-based attention tends to be less pronounced than space-based attention and can vary greatly between individuals. Here we investigated whether the low prevalence of object-based effects is related to variability in the temporal dynamics of attentional selection. We manipulated cue-to-target intervals from 50 to 600 ms in a two-rectangle discrimination task. Space- and object-based effects were measured at the group level and for individual participants. We used bootstrapping to highlight cue-to-target intervals with maximal space- and object-based effects, and fast Fourier transform (FFT) to investigate rhythmic sampling of locations within and between objects. Whereas overall, space-based effects were robust and stable across all cue-to-target intervals for most participants, object-based effects were small and were only found for a small subset of participants in the different cue-to-target intervals. In the frequency domain, only a small number of participants exhibited significant periodicities, prompting the need for further investigation and consideration. Overall, our study suggests variability in the temporal dynamics of object-based effects underlying their low prevalence, a finding that needs to be further investigated in future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Lou
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Monicque M. Lorist
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, Cognitive Neuroscience Center, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Karin S. Pilz
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Cito Institute for Test Development, Arnhem, The Netherlands
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2
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Abstract
Research has recently shown that efficient selection relies on the implicit extraction of environmental regularities, known as statistical learning. Although this has been demonstrated for scenes, similar learning arguably also occurs for objects. To test this, we developed a paradigm that allowed us to track attentional priority at specific object locations irrespective of the object's orientation in three experiments with young adults (all Ns = 80). Experiments 1a and 1b established within-object statistical learning by demonstrating increased attentional priority at relevant object parts (e.g., hammerhead). Experiment 2 extended this finding by demonstrating that learned priority generalized to viewpoints in which learning never took place. Together, these findings demonstrate that as a function of statistical learning, the visual system not only is able to tune attention relative to specific locations in space but also can develop preferential biases for specific parts of an object independently of the viewpoint of that object.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dirk van Moorselaar
- Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.,Institute of Brain and Behaviour Amsterdam (iBBA), The Netherlands
| | - Jan Theeuwes
- Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.,Institute of Brain and Behaviour Amsterdam (iBBA), The Netherlands.,William James Center for Research, ISPA-Instituto Universitario
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3
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Lou H, Lorist MM, Pilz KS. Effects of cue validity on attentional selection. J Vis 2022; 22:15. [PMID: 35881412 PMCID: PMC9339692 DOI: 10.1167/jov.22.8.15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Visual attention can be allocated to locations or objects, leading to enhanced processing of information at the specific location (space-based effects) or specific object (object-based effects). Previous studies have observed object-based effects to be smaller and less robust than space-based effects, with large individual differences in their temporal occurrence. Studies on space- and object-based effects are often based on a two-rectangle paradigm in which targets appear at cued locations more often than uncued locations. It is, however, unclear whether and how the target's spatial probability affects the temporal occurrence of these effects. In three experiments with different cue validities (80%, 50% and 33%), we systematically changed the interval between the cue and the target from 50 to 600 ms. On a group level and for individuals, we examined how cue validity affects the occurrence of object- and space-based effects. We observed that the magnitude and the prevalence of space-based effects heavily decreased with reduced cue validity. Object-based effects became even more sparse and turned increasingly negative with decreasing cue validity, representing a different-object rather than a same-object advantage. These findings indicate that changes in cue-validity affect both space- and object-based effects, but it does not account for the low prevalence and magnitude of object-based effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Lou
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.,
| | - Monicque M Lorist
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.,Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, Cognitive Neuroscience Center, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.,
| | - Karin S Pilz
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.,Cito Institute for Test Development, Arnhem, the Netherlands.,
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4
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Abstract
Twenty-five years of research has explored the object-based attention effect using the two-rectangles paradigm and closely related paradigms. While reading this literature, we noticed statistical attributes that are sometimes related to questionable research practices, which can undermine the reported conclusions. To quantify these attributes, we applied the Test for Excess Success (TES) individually to 37 articles that investigate various properties of object-based attention and comprise four or more experiments. A TES analysis estimates the probability that a direct replication of the experiments in a given article with the same sample sizes would have the same success (or better) as the original article. If the probability is low, then readers should be skeptical about the conclusions that are based on those experimental results. We find that 19 of the 37 analyzed articles (51%) seem too good to be true in that they have a replication probability below 0.1. In a new large sample study, we do find evidence for the basic object-based attention effect in the two-rectangles paradigm, which this literature builds on. A power analysis using this data shows that commonly used sample sizes in studies that investigate properties of object-based attention with the two-rectangles paradigm are, in fact, much too small to reliably detect even the basic effect.
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Huether AXA, Langley LK, Thomas LE. Aging and Inhibition of Return to Locations and Objects. Front Psychol 2021; 12:706549. [PMID: 34456819 PMCID: PMC8387815 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.706549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Accepted: 07/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Inhibition of return (IOR) is thought to reflect a cognitive mechanism that biases attention from returning to previously engaged items. While models of cognitive aging have proposed deficits within select inhibitory domains, older adults have demonstrated preserved IOR functioning in previous studies. The present study investigated whether inhibition associated with objects shows the same age patterns as inhibition associated with locations. Young adults (18-22 years) and older adults (60-86 years) were tested in two experiments measuring location- and object-based IOR. Using a dynamic paradigm (Experiment 1), both age groups produced significant location-based IOR, but only young adults produced significant object-based IOR, consistent with previous findings. However, with a static paradigm (Experiment 2), young adults and older adults produced both location- and object-based IOR, indicating that object-based IOR is preserved in older adults under some conditions. The findings provide partial support for unique age-related inhibitory patterns associated with attention to objects and locations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Asenath X A Huether
- Department of Psychology, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, United States
| | - Linda K Langley
- Department of Psychology, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, United States
| | - Laura E Thomas
- Department of Psychology, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, United States
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6
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Attention can operate on object representations in visual sensory memory. Atten Percept Psychophys 2021; 83:3069-3085. [PMID: 34036534 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-021-02323-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Numerous studies have shown that attention can be allocated to various types of objects, such as low-level objects developed by perceptual organization and high-level objects developed by semantic associations. However, little is known about whether attention can also be affected solely by object representations in the brain, after the disappearance of physical objects. Here, we used a modified double-rectangle paradigm to investigate how attention is affected by object representation in visual sensory memory when the physical objects disappear for a short period of time before the target onset. By manipulating the interstimulus interval (ISI) between the offset of the objects and the onset of the target, an object-based attention effect, with shorter reaction times (RTs) for within-object relative to between-object conditions, was observed in the short-ISI (within 500 ms in Experiments 1a, 1b, 2, and 3) conditions while disappearing in the long-ISI (800 ms in Experiment 4) conditions. This result demonstrated that the mere presence of object representation in visual sensory memory, or the sensory memory-maintained object, can serve as an object unit that attention can operate on. This provides evidence for the relationship between object-based attention and visual sensory memory: object representation in visual sensory memory could affect attentional allocation, or attention can operate on a sensory memory-maintained object.
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Abstract
When a part of an object is cued, targets presented in other locations on the same object are detected more rapidly and accurately than are targets on other objects. Often in object-based attention experiments, cues and targets appear not only on the same object but also on the same surface. In four psychophysical experiments, we examined whether the "object" of attentional selection was the entire object or one of its surfaces. In Experiment 1, facilitation effects were found for targets on uncued, adjacent surfaces on the same object, even when the cued and uncued surfaces were oriented differently in depth. This suggests that the "object-based" benefits of attention are not restricted to individual surfaces. Experiments 2a and 2b examined the interaction of perceptual grouping and object-based attention. In both experiments, cuing benefits extended across objects when the surfaces of those objects could be grouped, but the effects were not as strong as in Experiment 1, where the surfaces belonged to the same object. The cuing effect was strengthened in Experiment 3 by connecting the cued and target surfaces with an intermediate surface, making them appear to all belong to the same object. Together, the experiments suggest that the objects of attention do not necessarily map onto discrete physical objects defined by bounded surfaces. Instead, attentional selection can be allocated to perceptual groups of surfaces and objects in the same way as it can to a location or to groups of features that define a single object.
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Zhao J, Song F, Zhou S, Hu S, Liu D, Wang Y, Kong F. The impact of monetary stimuli on object-based attention. Br J Psychol 2019; 111:460-472. [PMID: 31361033 DOI: 10.1111/bjop.12418] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2018] [Revised: 06/25/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Previous research has implied that monetary reward to target location (a reward for spatial properties) can affect object-based attention, but no study has directly investigated the influence of monetary objects (a reward for object properties) on object-based attention. Thus, it is unclear whether and how monetary objects can affect object-based attention. To experimentally investigate this problem, this study adapted the well-established two-rectangle paradigm. In Experiment 1, either two 100-yuan notes or two 1-yuan notes were presented to participants. We found an object-based effect with faster responses to targets at an uncued position on the cued object compared to those at an equidistant position on the uncued object; the effect was similar in 100-yuan and 1-yuan note trials. In Experiment 2, two notes (one 100-yuan and one 1-yuan) were simultaneously presented to participants, and cue location (100-yuan, 1-yuan) was manipulated. We found a greater object-based effect when the cue appeared on the 100-yuan note than on the 1-yuan note. These results suggest that the rewarding property of objects can affect object-based attention by means of altering object salience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingjing Zhao
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China.,Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, Xi'an, China
| | - Fangxing Song
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China.,Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, Xi'an, China
| | - Sicen Zhou
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China.,Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, Xi'an, China
| | - Saisai Hu
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China.,Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, Xi'an, China
| | - Dawei Liu
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China.,Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, Xi'an, China
| | - Yonghui Wang
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China.,Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, Xi'an, China
| | - Feng Kong
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China.,Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, Xi'an, China
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The influence of object similarity and orientation on object-based cueing. Atten Percept Psychophys 2016; 79:63-77. [DOI: 10.3758/s13414-016-1229-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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10
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Selection of multiple cued items is possible during visual short-term memory maintenance. Atten Percept Psychophys 2015; 77:1625-46. [DOI: 10.3758/s13414-015-0836-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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11
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Yuan J, Fu S. Attention can operate on semantic objects defined by individual Chinese characters. VISUAL COGNITION 2014. [DOI: 10.1080/13506285.2014.916772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Pilz KS, Roggeveen AB, Creighton SE, Bennett PJ, Sekuler AB. How prevalent is object-based attention? PLoS One 2012; 7:e30693. [PMID: 22348018 PMCID: PMC3278414 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0030693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2011] [Accepted: 12/23/2011] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous research suggests that visual attention can be allocated to locations in space (space-based attention) and to objects (object-based attention). The cueing effects associated with space-based attention tend to be large and are found consistently across experiments. Object-based attention effects, however, are small and found less consistently across experiments. In three experiments we address the possibility that variability in object-based attention effects across studies reflects low incidence of such effects at the level of individual subjects. Experiment 1 measured space-based and object-based cueing effects for horizontal and vertical rectangles in 60 subjects comparing commonly used target detection and discrimination tasks. In Experiment 2 we ran another 120 subjects in a target discrimination task in which rectangle orientation varied between subjects. Using parametric statistical methods, we found object-based effects only for horizontal rectangles. Bootstrapping methods were used to measure effects in individual subjects. Significant space-based cueing effects were found in nearly all subjects in both experiments, across tasks and rectangle orientations. However, only a small number of subjects exhibited significant object-based cueing effects. Experiment 3 measured only object-based attention effects using another common paradigm and again, using bootstrapping, we found only a small number of subjects that exhibited significant object-based cueing effects. Our results show that object-based effects are more prevalent for horizontal rectangles, which is in accordance with the theory that attention may be allocated more easily along the horizontal meridian. The fact that so few individuals exhibit a significant object-based cueing effect presumably is why previous studies of this effect might have yielded inconsistent results. The results from the current study highlight the importance of considering individual subject data in addition to commonly used statistical methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karin S Pilz
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
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14
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Successes and failures in producing attentional object-based cueing effects. Atten Percept Psychophys 2011; 74:43-69. [DOI: 10.3758/s13414-011-0211-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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15
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Hollingworth A, Maxcey-Richard AM, Vecera SP. The spatial distribution of attention within and across objects. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform 2011; 38:135-51. [PMID: 21728455 DOI: 10.1037/a0024463] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Attention operates to select both spatial locations and perceptual objects. However, the specific mechanism by which attention is oriented to objects is not well understood. We examined the means by which object structure constrains the distribution of spatial attention (i.e., a "grouped array"). Using a modified version of the Egly et al. object cuing task, we systematically manipulated within-object distance and object boundaries. Four major findings are reported: 1) spatial attention forms a gradient across the attended object; 2) object boundaries limit the distribution of this gradient, with the spread of attention constrained by a boundary; 3) boundaries within an object operate similarly to across-object boundaries: we observed object-based effects across a discontinuity within a single object, without the demand to divide or switch attention between discrete object representations; and 4) the gradient of spatial attention across an object directly modulates perceptual sensitivity, implicating a relatively early locus for the grouped array representation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Hollingworth
- Department of Psychology, The University of Iowa, 11 Seashore Hall E, Iowa City, IA 52242-1407, USA.
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17
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Object-based eye movements: The eyes prefer to stay within the same object. Atten Percept Psychophys 2010; 72:597-601. [DOI: 10.3758/app.72.3.597] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Limited influence of perceptual organization on the precision of attentional control. Atten Percept Psychophys 2009; 71:971-83. [PMID: 19429973 DOI: 10.3758/app.71.4.971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The role of perceptual organization in the precision of attentional control was assessed in three experiments. Observers viewed circular arrays of disks that varied in density. One disk was cued, directing attention to that disk. A series of tones then indicated shifts of attention to the next disk that was of the same color (Experiments 1 and 2) or on the same depth plane (Experiment 3). In the homogeneous condition, all of the disks were the same color (Experiments 1 and 2) or on the same depth plane (Experiment 3). In the heterogeneous condition, the disks alternated in color (Experiments 1 and 2) or stereoscopically defined depth (Experiment 3). If the observers were able to limit attention to disks within a group, the effective density of the displays in the heterogeneous conditions should have been one half that in the homogeneous conditions. There was little evidence that the observers could do this, indicating a limited role of perceptual organization in the precision of attentional control.
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