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Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments

Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments

Published on: January 23, 2017

Center-surround effects on perceived speed.

Maarten J van der Smagt¹, Frans A J Verstraten, Chris L E Paffen

¹Utrecht University, Helmholtz Institute, Experimental Psychology Division, Heidelberglaan 2, 3584 CS Utrecht, Netherlands. M.J.vanderSmagt@uu.nl

Vision Research

|July 6, 2010

Summary

Center-surround interactions influence perceived visual speed, similar to their impact on direction discrimination. Changes in contrast and surround size altered speed perception, especially at lower velocities.

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Area of Science:

Visual perception
Neuroscience
Computational vision

Background:

Center-surround interactions are crucial for visual motion processing.
Previous research (Tadin et al., 2003) demonstrated their effect on direction discrimination thresholds.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate if center-surround interactions similarly affect perceived visual speed.
To compare the effects of contrast and surround size on perceived speed at different velocities.

Main Methods:

Observers matched the speed of a test stimulus to a reference stimulus.
Reference stimulus had variable contrast and surround size, moving at 1 or 12 cycles per second (cps).
Test stimulus had fixed contrast and no surround.

Main Results:

At 1-cps, reduced contrast and increased surround size decreased perceived speed.
An exception at 1-cps: larger surrounds increased perceived speed for very low contrast stimuli.
At 12-cps, perceived speed decreased only at the lowest contrast; surround size effects were similar across velocities.

Conclusions:

Center-surround interactions appear to affect perceived speed analogously to direction discrimination, particularly at lower velocities.
The influence of contrast on perceived speed is velocity-dependent.
Findings highlight the complex role of spatial context in visual speed perception.