Serial dependence in vision: Merely encoding the previous-trial target is not enough.

Area of Science:

• Cognitive psychology
• Visual perception
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Perception of a visual stimulus can be influenced by preceding stimuli, a phenomenon known as serial dependence.
• The exact mechanisms driving serial dependence, specifically whether encoding or post-encoding processes are responsible, remain unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether the encoding of a previous visual stimulus is sufficient to cause serial dependence.
• To determine if post-encoding processes play a role in the serial dependence effect.

Main Methods:

• Participants performed a task requiring them to report either the color or direction of moving dots.
• A postcue indicated the relevant feature after stimulus offset, ensuring both features were encoded.
• Serial dependence for motion perception was assessed based on the previously reported feature dimension.

Main Results:

• A serial dependence effect for motion was observed only when the previous trial's reported feature was motion direction, not color.
• This pattern persisted regardless of task difficulty.
• While serial dependence occurred after both color and motion reports, it was weaker following color reports.

Conclusions:

• Post-perceptual processing is critical for establishing serial dependence.
• Mere encoding of a previous stimulus is not sufficient to elicit the serial dependence effect.
• The act of reporting a specific feature influences subsequent perception.