title: Eye position affects audio-visual fusion in darkness.
abstract: We investigated the frame of reference involved in audio-visual (AV) fusion over space. This multisensory phenomenon refers to the perception of unity resulting from visual and auditory stimuli despite their potential spatial disparity. The extent of this illusion depends on the eccentricity in azimuth of the bimodal stimulus (Godfroy et al, 2003 Perception 32 1233-1245). In a previous study, conducted in a luminous environment, Roumes et al 2004 (Perception 33 Supplement, 142) have shown that variation of AV fusion is gaze-dependent. Here we examine the contribution of ego- or allocentric visual cues by conducting the experiment in total darkness. Auditory and visual stimuli were displayed in synchrony with various spatial disparities. Subjects had to judge their unity ('fusion' or 'no fusion'). Results showed that AV fusion in darkness remains gaze-dependent despite the lack of any allocentric cues and confirmed the hypothesis that the reference frame of the bimodal space is neither head-centred nor eye-centred.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Médecine Aérospatiale du Service de Santé des Armées, BP 73, 91223 Brétigny-sur-Orge, France. dhartnagel@imassa.fr
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hartnagel
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bichot
authors.forename: Corinne
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Roumes
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D000328:Adult; D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D003624:Darkness; D005133:Eye Movements / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D013028:Space Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*