Binocular switch suppression: a new method for persistently rendering the visible 'invisible'
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Updated: Jul 6, 2026

How to Create and Use Binocular Rivalry
Published on: November 10, 2010
Derek H Arnold1, Phillip Law, Thomas S A Wallis
1School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Qld 4072, Australia. darnold@psy.uq.edu.au
Abstract:
Rendering the usually visible 'invisible' has long been a popular experimental manipulation. With one notable exception, 'continuous flash suppression' [Tsuchiya, N., & Koch, C. (2005). Continuous flash suppression reduces negative afterimages. Nature Neuroscience, 8, 1096-1101], existing methods of achieving this goal suffer from being either unable to suppress stimuli from awareness for prolonged periods, from being unable to reliably suppress stimuli at specific epochs, or from a combination of both of these limitations. Here we report a new method, binocular switch suppression (BSS), which overcomes these restrictions. We establish that BSS is novel as it taps a different causal mechanism to the only similar pre-existing method. We also establish that BSS is superior to pre-existing methods both in terms of the depth and duration of perceptual suppression achieved. BSS should therefore prove to be a useful tool for the large number of researchers interested in exploring the neural correlates and functional consequences of conscious visual awareness.
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