Role of task factors in visual field asymmetries

Any tachistoscopic study of cerebral hemisphere asymmetry imposes a variety of task demands on the participants, ranging from demands imposed by specific viewing conditions to demands imposed by response output requirements. The present article discusses the role of several task factors that influence processing after the initial reception of the stimulus input, suggests a theoretical rationale for some of the effects of these task factors, and considers implications for future studies of visual laterality. The task factors discussed include both those that are relevant for minimizing artifacts that have nothing to do with hemispheric asymmetry and those that are relevant for interpreting hemispheric asymmetry in terms of specific perceptual and cognitive processes.