The snake in the grass revisited: an experimental comparison of threat detection paradigms

The current investigation compares the results of two commonly used visual detection paradigms-the standard adult button-press detection paradigm used in Öhman, Flykt, and Esteves (2001), and the new child-friendly touch-screen detection paradigm used in LoBue and DeLoache (2008)-within the same samples of adult participants. Results suggest that both paradigms produce the same pattern of findings with regard to detection latency for threat-relevant versus threat-irrelevant stimuli: Adults detected threat-relevant targets more quickly than threat-irrelevant targets across the varying procedures. However, results with respect to automaticity of detection as suggested by Öhman et al. (2001) were only replicated with the classic button-press paradigm. The findings validate the touch-screen visual search procedure and have important implications for choosing an appropriate methodology for studying threat detection.