Recall of two visual targets embedded in RSVP streams of distractors depends on their temporal and spatial relationship.
In the present study, I examined how the temporal and spatial relationship between two visual targets (T1 and T2) affects the recall of both targets when they are embedded in rapidly displayed distractors. Presented on a trial were two synchronized streams of characters, one to the left and the other to the right of the fixation. Independent of their spatial relationship, a U-shaped curve described the recall of the second target (T2) as a function of stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) between T1 and T2. It indicated the presence of the attentional blink with a T2 deficit sparing up to about 150- to 200-msec SOA. However, T2 deficit was greater at short SOAs (up to about 250 msec) when T1 and T2 occurred at different locations than when they occurred at a common location. When SOA was short (100 msec or so), recall of T1 was impaired when T1 and T2 occurred at a common location, but not when they were at different locations. The present findings can be reconciled with existing models (e.g., the interference model and the two-stage model) by distinguishing automatic and controlled attention gating processes at the transfer of perceptual representations to a more durable storage (e.g., visual short-term memory).
Shih
S I
SI
Department of Psychology, University of Southhampton, Highfield S017 1BJ, England. sis@soton.ac.uk
D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention; D003118:Color Perception; D015350:Contrast Sensitivity; D005260:Female; D005364:Field Dependence-Independence; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D011939:Mental Recall; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D011601:Psychophysics; D011930:Reaction Time; D012691:Serial Learning