title: How to (and how not to) think about top-down influences on visual perception.
abstract: The question of whether cognition can influence perception has a long history in neuroscience and philosophy. Here, we outline a novel approach to this issue, arguing that it should be viewed within the framework of top-down information-processing. This approach leads to a reversal of the standard explanatory order of the cognitive penetration debate: we suggest studying top-down processing at various levels without preconceptions of perception or cognition. Once a clear picture has emerged about which processes have influences on those at lower levels, we can re-address the extent to which they should be considered perceptual or cognitive. Using top-down processing within the visual system as a model for higher-level influences, we argue that the current evidence indicates clear constraints on top-down influences at all stages of information processing; it does, however, not support the notion of a boundary between specific types of information-processing as proposed by the cognitive impenetrability hypothesis.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology and Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre, Cardiff University, 70 Park Place, CF10 3AT Cardiff, Wales, UK. Electronic address: teufelc@cardiff.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Teufel
authors.affiliation: Centre for Philosophical Psychology, University of Antwerp, D 413, Grote Kauwenberg 18, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium.
authors.forename: Bence
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Nanay
mesh_terms: D003071:Cognition; D006801:Humans; D011582:Psychological Theory; D014796:Visual Perception
keywords: Cognitive penetration; Encapsulation; Feedback connections; Top-down processing; Visual perception