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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 17, 2026

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity
06:46

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity

Published on: March 18, 2019

Spatial attention changes excitability of human visual cortex to direct stimulation.

Sven Bestmann1, Christian C Ruff, Colin Blakemore

  • 1Institute of Neurology, Wellcome Department of Imaging Neuroscience, University College London, London WC1N 3BG, United Kingdom. s.bestmann@fil.ion.ucl.ac.uk

Current Biology : CB
|January 24, 2007
PubMed
Summary

Spatial attention enhances visual awareness by increasing visual cortex excitability. This effect was demonstrated using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to create phosphenes, showing attention lowers the threshold for conscious perception.

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Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity
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Published on: March 18, 2019

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Published on: January 23, 2017

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Science
  • Visual Perception

Background:

  • Conscious perception relies on both sensory input and attention.
  • Previous research suggests spatial attention influences visual awareness via top-down modulation of visual cortex excitability.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To directly test if spatial attention enhances visual cortex excitability in humans.
  • To investigate the role of attention in visual awareness independent of eye-based sensory pathways.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized cortical transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to directly stimulate the human visual cortex.
  • Induced artificial visual percepts (phosphenes) to assess visual awareness.
  • Compared TMS intensity required to elicit a conscious phosphene under attended versus unattended spatial locations.

Main Results:

  • A significantly lower TMS intensity was required to elicit a conscious phosphene when the perceived location was attended.
  • This indicates that attended locations are processed with enhanced excitability in the visual cortex.

Conclusions:

  • Spatial attention enhances visual cortex excitability, thereby increasing visual awareness.
  • This enhancement occurs even when bypassing the natural sensory pathway from the eye through the thalamus.