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Published on: January 23, 2017
Is all sparing created equal? Comparing lag-1 sparing and extended sparing in temporal object perception.
Troy A W Visser1, Jeneva L Ohan
1School of Psychology, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Australia, QLD 4072. taw.visser@gmail.com
Summary
The attentional blink, an impairment in target accuracy, largely disappears with consecutive targets (lag-1 and extended sparing). This study found similar effects of attentional switches on both sparing types, suggesting a unified mechanism in temporal object perception.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Perception
Background:
- The attentional blink (AB) impairs accuracy for a second target (T2) when targets (T1, T2) are separated by distractors.
- Lag-1 sparing and extended sparing describe exceptions where T2 accuracy is preserved when targets appear consecutively.
Purpose of the Study:
- To test the hypothesis that lag-1 sparing and extended sparing share a common underlying mechanism.
- To investigate if attentional switches affecting lag-1 sparing similarly impact extended sparing.
Main Methods:
- Examined the effect of various attentional switches on extended sparing.
- Compared the impact of these switches on both lag-1 and extended sparing phenomena.
Main Results:
- Attentional switches known to influence lag-1 sparing demonstrated substantial parallels in their effects on extended sparing.
- The findings suggest that attentional switches play a similar role in both lag-1 and extended sparing.
Conclusions:
- Results support a unified account for sparing phenomena in temporal object perception.
- The study provides evidence for common mechanisms underlying different forms of attentional sparing.
