title: Is calibration of the perception of length modality-independent?
abstract: Perception becomes increasingly scaled to environmental properties when feedback is provided about the perception of a given property. Understanding the process of calibration requires a description of the stimulation patterns to which perceivers become calibrated as a result of such feedback. Recent investigations using a transfer-of-calibration paradigm have shown that recalibration of the perception of length transfers from audition to touch. Such results have provided preliminary evidence that calibration of this property is modality-independent (i.e., that feedback about length calibrates perceivers to a modality-independent stimulation pattern). The experiment reported here provides a stronger test of this claim by demonstrating that perception transfers in both directions (i.e., from audition to touch, and vice versa). The results provide further evidence that calibration is modality-independent, and they are consistent with the more general proposal that the stimulation patterns that support perception are also modality-independent.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Illinois State University, Campus Box 4620, Normal, IL, 61790-4620, USA. JeffreyWagman@ilstu.edu
authors.forename: Jeffrey B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Wagman
authors.forename: Drew H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Abney
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D002138:Calibration; D005246:Feedback; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D012858:Size Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D014110:Touch / Q000502:physiology; D055698:Touch Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D014163:Transfer, Psychology / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult