Clockwise Bias in 2D Rotation: A Cognitive Rather Than Sensory Phenomenon

Area of Science:

• Visual perception
• Cognitive neuroscience
• Computational vision

Background:

• Previous research indicates a clockwise (CW) over counterclockwise (CCW) rotation preference in visual tasks.
• The neural mechanisms and developmental stage of this CW bias remain poorly understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the emergence stage of the CW bias in visual perception.
• To differentiate between low-level sensory and higher-level cognitive contributions to the CW bias.

Main Methods:

• Utilized apparent motion, binocular rivalry, and breaking continuous flash suppression (b-CFS) paradigms with 2D rotation stimuli.
• Assessed perceptual dominance, breakthrough times, and response biases across different awareness conditions.
• Manipulated stimulus ambiguity in apparent motion tasks.

Main Results:

• A significant CW bias was observed in apparent motion tasks, with CW percepts dominating.
• No CW bias was detected in binocular rivalry or during unconscious processing assessed via b-CFS.
• The CW bias was found to interact with stimulus ambiguity, suggesting it is not a fixed sensory or response bias.

Conclusions:

• The clockwise (CW) bias in 2D visual perception arises after stimuli reach conscious awareness.
• Findings suggest higher-level cognitive processes, rather than low-level sensory mechanisms, underlie the CW bias.
• The visual system may employ cognitive strategies to resolve perceptual ambiguity, leading to the CW preference.