Developmental motor function plays a key role in visual search

Adults often miss a disturbingly high percentage of rare targets in visual arrays. The mechanisms underlying this effect remain hotly debated. This study examines the effects of developing motor control on the speed and accuracy of visual search. Children detected targets that appeared rarely or frequently. Participants reported a target's presence or absence by either pressing a key or marking on recording sheets. The results replicated past reports of increased errors with reduced target prevalence in adults. A potential developmental trend in performance is linked to a measure of motor function. When the pressure to respond quickly was removed, search accuracy greatly improved for rare targets. A developmental account for the perceptual-motor mechanisms of prevalence effect is discussed.