Dynamic illusory size contrast: a relative-size illusion modulated by stimulus motion and eye movements

We present a novel size-contrast illusion that depends on the dynamic nature of the stimulus. In the dynamic illusory size-contrast (DISC) effect, the viewer perceives the size of a target bar to be shrinking when it is surrounded by an expanding box and when there are additional dynamic cues such as eye movements, changes in retinal eccentricity of the bar, or changes in the spatial position of the bar. Importantly, the expanding box was necessary but not sufficient to obtain an illusory percept, distinguishing the DISC effect from other size-contrast illusions. We propose that the visual system is weighting the different sources of information that contribute to size perception based on the level of uncertainty in the retinal image size of the object. Whereas the growing box normally has a weak influence on the perceived size of the target bar, this influence is enhanced when other dynamic changes in the environment (e.g., eye movements, changes in retinal eccentricity, and target motion) lead to uncertainty in the retinal size of the target bar. Given the compelling nature of the DISC effect and the inherently dynamic nature of our environment, these factors are likely to play an important role in everyday size judgments.