The course of visual searching to a target in a fixed location: electrophysiological evidence from an emotional flanker task.
The present study investigated the course of visual searching to a target in a fixed location, using an emotional flanker task. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded while participants performed the task. Emotional facial expressions were used as emotion-eliciting triggers. The course of visual searching was analyzed through the emotional effects arising from these emotion-eliciting stimuli. The flanker stimuli showed effects at about 150-250 ms following the stimulus onset, while the effect of target stimuli showed effects at about 300-400 ms. The visual search sequence in an emotional flanker task moved from a whole overview to a specific target, even if the target always appeared at a known location. The processing sequence was "parallel" in this task. The results supported the feature integration theory of visual search.
Dong
Guangheng
G
Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, 688# Yingbin Road, Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province 321000, China. dongguangheng@zjnu.edu.cn
Yang
Lizhu
L
Shen
Yue
Y
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004585:Electrooculography / Q000379:methods; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005074:Evoked Potentials, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005403:Fixation, Ocular / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult