Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Depth Perception and Spatial Vision

Depth Perception and Spatial Vision

Depth perception is the ability to perceive objects three-dimensionally. It relies on two types of cues: binocular and monocular. Binocular cues depend on the combination of images from both eyes and how the eyes work together. Since the eyes are in slightly different positions, each eye captures a slightly different image. This disparity between images, known as binocular disparity, helps the brain interpret depth. When the brain compares these images, it determines the distance to an object.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Visual working memory in Parkinson's disease patients using real-world visual objects and perceptual organization.

BMC psychology·2026

Same author

Object recognition is shaped by the dynamic interplay between low-level contrast and high-level context.

Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior·2026

Same author

Visual working memory is impaired in Alzheimer's disease: evidence from real-world objects and perceptual organization.

Experimental brain research·2026

Same author

The farther, the earlier: perceived depth biases temporal order judgments.

Psychological research·2026

Same author

Enzymatic synthesis and functional characterization of site-specific S/O-linked N-glycopeptides: Elucidating the impact of glycosidic linkage patterns on bioactivity.

Carbohydrate polymers·2025

Same author

Separate storage mechanisms of absolute depth and relative depth in working memory: Encoding, maintenance, consolidation, and attention engagements.

Journal of experimental psychology. Learning, memory, and cognition·2025

Same journal

Language switches can be monitored but not fully controlled: Eye-tracking evidence for syntax-driven language control.

Psychonomic bulletin & review·2026

Same journal

Moving beyond discrete categories in motor cognition.

Psychonomic bulletin & review·2026

Same journal

Decoding time from space: A review of the complication clock and its representation of temporal experience.

Psychonomic bulletin & review·2026

Same journal

Mind wandering during first- and foreign-language reading.

Psychonomic bulletin & review·2026

Same journal

Lexical word processing is unaffected by rapid invisible frequency tagging in reading: Evidence from eye movements.

Psychonomic bulletin & review·2026

Same journal

Anxiety modulates voluntary attentional orienting to emotional gaze cues: Eye movements for pro- and anti-saccades.

Psychonomic bulletin & review·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 23, 2025

Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments

Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments

Published on: January 23, 2017

Exogenous spatial attention shortens perceived depth.

Wanyi Guan¹, Jiehui Qian²

¹Department of Psychology, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006, China.

Psychonomic Bulletin & Review

|April 23, 2020

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Exogenous spatial attention, which guides focus to specific locations, was found to shorten perceived depth. This means attended objects appear closer, altering our perception of spatial relationships.

Keywords:

Binocular disparity Depth perception Exogenous attention Spatial attention

More Related Videos

Development of a Gaze-Contingent Display Framework Designed for Perceptual and Oculomotor Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Development of a Gaze-Contingent Display Framework Designed for Perceptual and Oculomotor Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Published on: April 11, 2025

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity

Published on: March 18, 2019

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Dec 23, 2025

Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments

Measuring Attention and Visual Processing Speed by Model-based Analysis of Temporal-order Judgments

Published on: January 23, 2017

Development of a Gaze-Contingent Display Framework Designed for Perceptual and Oculomotor Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Development of a Gaze-Contingent Display Framework Designed for Perceptual and Oculomotor Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Published on: April 11, 2025

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity

Published on: March 18, 2019

Area of Science:

Cognitive Neuroscience
Visual Perception
Psychology

Background:

Spatial attention influences visual perception across various dimensions.
Depth perception is crucial for environmental interaction.
The effect of exogenous spatial attention on depth perception remains unexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate whether exogenous spatial attention affects stereoscopic depth perception.
To determine if attention can alter the perceived spatial relationship between an observer and an object.

Main Methods:

An experimental paradigm adapted from Gobell and Carrasco (2005) was employed.
Peripheral cues directed exogenous attention to one of two line stimuli.
Participants judged perceived depth of lines with varying disparities under manipulated attention.

Main Results:

A farther stereoscopic depth at the attended location was perceived as nearer than a depth at the unattended location.
A control experiment using a postcue paradigm showed no such effect, ruling out response bias.
Exogenous spatial attention was found to shorten perceived depth.

Conclusions:

Exogenous spatial attention significantly alters stereoscopic depth perception.
The observed effect may involve neural enhancement tuned to disparity or attentional modulation of apparent contrast.
Attention can modify not only visual appearance but also the perceived spatial relations of objects.