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Induced vergence-accommodation conflict reduces cognitive performance in the Stroop test
François Daniel1, Zoï Kapoula2
1IRIS Group, Physiopathologie de la Vision et Motricité Binoculaire CNRS FR3636, Université Paris Descartes, Paris, France. fdaniel.optometry@gmail.com.
Scientific Reports
|February 6, 2019
Summary
Cognitive load affects binocular vision. This study found that vergence-accommodation conflict, induced by prisms or lenses, disrupts saccades and fixations more during demanding cognitive tasks, impacting reading and visual stability.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Ophthalmology
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- The relationship between cognitive processes and the control of eye movements, specifically saccades and fixations during reading, is not fully understood.
- Cognitive demand can influence visual perception and motor control, but its interaction with binocular vision under induced conflict requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of cognitive load on saccades and fixation parameters during the Stroop test.
- To examine how experimentally induced vergence-accommodation conflict affects binocular motor control during tasks with varying cognitive demands.
Main Methods:
- Twenty-one healthy subjects performed the Stroop test under normal viewing, base-out prism, and negative spherical lens conditions to induce vergence-accommodation conflict.
- Eye movements (saccades and fixations) were recorded using video-oculography during reading, color denomination, and interference tasks.
- Cognitive load was manipulated by varying the Stroop task conditions.
Main Results:
- Fixation duration varied with cognitive demand: longer in interference, shorter in reading tasks.
- Vergence-accommodation conflict exacerbated cognitive interference effects compared to normal viewing.
- Binocular motor control showed reduced tolerance to prism-induced conflict, leading to destabilized saccades and fixations.
Conclusions:
- Cognitive load and vergence-accommodation conflict interact, with tolerance to visual conflict decreasing under higher cognitive demand.
- The findings support a link between cognitive function and the maintenance of high-quality single binocular vision.
- This study highlights the intricate interplay between cognitive processes and the precise control required for binocular reading.
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