Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 6, 2026

Mapping Cortical Dynamics Using Simultaneous MEG/EEG and Anatomically-constrained Minimum-norm Estimates: an Auditory Attention Example
Published on: October 24, 2012
Influence of visual information on the auditory median plane of the head
Tobias Schicke1, Lisa Demuth, Brigitte Röder
1Department of Psychology, Philipps-University Marburg, Gutenbergst. 18, 35032 Marburg, Germany.
Abstract:
When determining the position of sounds, people perceive their subjective auditory median plane of the head (SAMP) displaced towards the side to which the head is turned. The present study investigated the influence of visual input on this effect. A group of congenitally blind and two groups of sighted adults, one with eyes open, one with eyes closed, adjusted the location of a tone presented through headphones in such a way that they perceived it to originate at their SAMP, both with the head straight ahead and turned 60 degrees to the right. While both sighted groups showed a reliable SAMP displacement in the 60 degrees condition, the congenitally blind did not. It is speculated that the blind have learned to integrate proprioceptive information more precisely contributing to superior auditory localization skills.
Related Concept Videos
Hearing
The Cochlea
The Vestibular System
Auditory Pathway
When viewed cross-sectionally, the cochlea reveals the scala vestibuli and scala tympani flanking the...
Auditory Perception
Perceiving Loudness, Pitch, and Location
Place theory, or place coding, suggests that different pitches are heard because various sound waves activate specific locations along the cochlea's basilar membrane. The brain determines the pitch of a sound by identifying...

