Prioritization by transients in visual search.
There is an ongoing debate as to whether prioritizing new objects over old objects (the so-called preview benefit) is the result of top-down inhibition of old objects (i.e., visual marking; Watson & Humphreys, 1997) or attentional allocation to new objects, presented with a luminance transient (Donk & Theeuwes, 2001). In the two experiments reported here, we tested whether prioritization by luminance transients alone can produce a subset-selective search similar to the preview effect. Subjects viewed multiobject displays while a subset of objects was briefly flashed. The subjects prioritized up to 14 flashed objects over at least 14 nonflashed objects. Since prioritization by luminance transients can produce a subset-selective search on its own, it may well play an important role in the preview benefit.
Belopolsky
Artem V
AV
Beckman Institute, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA. belopols@uiuc.edu
Theeuwes
Jan
J
Kramer
Arthur F
AF
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention; D015350:Contrast Sensitivity; D004193:Discrimination Learning; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007257:Information Theory; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D008029:Lighting; D008297:Male; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D010470:Perceptual Masking; D010775:Photic Stimulation