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Updated: Jan 6, 2026

Creating Objects and Object Categories for Studying Perception and Perceptual Learning
Published on: November 2, 2012
Perceptual and categorical processing and representation in color categorization
Zhiya Liu1, Wenliang Lu1, Carol A Seger2
1South China Normal University, School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, China.
Abstract:
We used fMRI to dissociate decisional and perceptual functions in color categorization. Participants viewed sequences of colored squares which varied in perceptual distance (0, 1 or 2 hue steps) and color (green, blue) and then judged whether one or two colors were present. Occipital, caudate, and anterior insula regions were active when more than one hue was presented, indicating a role in perceptual processing and attentional monitoring. Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex showed greater activity when two colors were present than a single color, indicating a role in coding color category. Cognitive control regions of the intraparietal sulcus and presupplementary motor area were sensitive to the interaction of decision and distance in perceptual space, indicating a role in combining these functions during decision making. These results support theories that colors are represented categorically at high levels of the cognitive hierarchy, and that visual cortex is sensitive to hue rather than color category.
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