Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 23, 2025

Applying Incongruent Visual-Tactile Stimuli during Object Transfer with Vibro-Tactile Feedback
Published on: May 23, 2019
Compensation Mechanisms May Not Always Account for Enhanced Multisensory Illusion in Older Adults: Evidence from
Heng Zhou1, Xiaole Liu1, Junming Yu1
1Department of Psychology, Research Center for Psychology and Behavioral Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
Abstract:
Sound-induced flash illusion (SiFI) is typical auditory dominance phenomenon in multisensory illusion. Although a number of studies have explored the SiFI in terms of age-related effects, the reasons for the enhanced SiFI in older adults are still controversial. In the present study, older and younger adults with equal visual discrimination were selected to explore age differences in SiFI effects, and to explore the neural indicators by resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) signals. A correlation analysis was calculated to examine the relationship between regional homogeneity (ReHo) and the SiFI. The results showed that both younger and older adults experienced significant fission and fusion illusions, and fission illusions of older adults were greater than that of younger adults. In addition, our results showed ReHo values of the left middle frontal gyrus (MFG), the right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and right superior frontal gyrus (SFG) were significantly positively correlated with the SiFI in older adults. More importantly, the comparison between older and younger adults showed that ReHo values of the right superior temporal gyrus (STG) decreased in older adults, and this was independent of the SiFI. The results indicated that when there was no difference in unisensory ability, the enhancement of multisensory illusion in older adults may not always be explained by compensation mechanisms.
Related Concept Videos
Synesthesia
Auditory Perception
Neuroplasticity
Hearing
Perception of Sound Waves
The pitch of a sound depends on the frequency and the pressure amplitude of the source. Two sounds of the same...

