Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Depth Perception and Spatial Vision01:15

Depth Perception and Spatial Vision

Depth perception is the ability to perceive objects three-dimensionally. It relies on two types of cues: binocular and monocular. Binocular cues depend on the combination of images from both eyes and how the eyes work together. Since the eyes are in slightly different positions, each eye captures a slightly different image. This disparity between images, known as binocular disparity, helps the brain interpret depth. When the brain compares these images, it determines the distance to an object.
Perceptual Constancy01:12

Perceptual Constancy

Perceptual constancy is the ability to recognize that objects remain consistent and unchanged even when their appearance varies due to changes in sensory input. There are four main types of perceptual constancy: size constancy, shape constancy, color constancy, and brightness constancy.
Size constancy is the recognition that an object remains the same size, even when its image on the retina changes. For instance, a bus is perceived to be large enough to carry people, even if it looks tiny from...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Role of neuronal oscillations in memory driven visual processing.

BMC biology·2026
Same author

Perceptual rhythms by phase-aligned perceptual performance peaks across trials.

Communications psychology·2026
Same author

Temporal concentration and phase synchronization in phase-amplitude coupling.

Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience·2025
Same author

Behavioral relevance of category selectivity revealed by human ECoG data.

PloS one·2025
Same author

Bilateral Field Advantage of Spatial Attention in Macaque Lateral Prefrontal Cortex.

Journal of cognitive neuroscience·2025
Same author

Advancing preference testing in humans and animals.

Behavior research methods·2025

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 10, 2026

A Gaze-Contingent Display Framework for Perceptual Learning Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss
07:12

A Gaze-Contingent Display Framework for Perceptual Learning Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Published on: April 11, 2025

Attention changes perceived size of moving visual patterns.

Katharina Anton-Erxleben1, Christian Henrich, Stefan Treue

  • 1Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, German Primate Center, Goettingen, Germany. kantonerxleben@dpz.gwdg.de

Journal of Vision
|November 14, 2007
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Focusing attention on a visual stimulus increases its perceived size, with effects ranging from 4% to 12%. This size increase was more noticeable for smaller stimuli, demonstrating attention

More Related Videos

Visualizing Visual Adaptation
04:43

Visualizing Visual Adaptation

Published on: April 24, 2017

Methods to Test Visual Attention Online
09:44

Methods to Test Visual Attention Online

Published on: February 19, 2015

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 10, 2026

A Gaze-Contingent Display Framework for Perceptual Learning Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss
07:12

A Gaze-Contingent Display Framework for Perceptual Learning Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Published on: April 11, 2025

Visualizing Visual Adaptation
04:43

Visualizing Visual Adaptation

Published on: April 24, 2017

Methods to Test Visual Attention Online
09:44

Methods to Test Visual Attention Online

Published on: February 19, 2015

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Visual Perception
  • Attention Studies

Background:

  • Spatial attention is known to alter receptive fields in the visual cortex, potentially distorting spatial perception.
  • Previous research suggests that attentional mechanisms may lead to an overestimation of the size of attended stimuli.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether the allocation of spatial attention influences the perceived size of visual stimuli in humans.
  • To quantify the effect of attention on perceived size and examine its dependence on stimulus size.

Main Methods:

  • Human subjects were presented with neutral and attended stimuli at different spatial locations.
  • The point of subjective equality (PSE) for perceived size was measured under conditions of automatic spatial attention.
  • Control experiments were conducted to rule out task difficulty or cue bias as confounding factors.

Main Results:

  • A significant increase in the perceived size of attended stimuli was observed, ranging from 4% to 12%.
  • The attentional effect on perceived size was more pronounced for smaller stimuli compared to larger ones.
  • While task difficulty and cue bias had some influence, they could not fully explain the observed results.

Conclusions:

  • Transient spatial attention directed towards a visual stimulus demonstrably increases its perceived size.
  • This finding suggests that attentional mechanisms play a crucial role in modulating visual perception and stimulus selection.