Lynn Huestegge

Oculomotor and linguistic determinants of reading development: A longitudinal study

We longitudinally assessed the development of oculomotor control in reading from second to fourth grade by having children read sentences with embedded target words of varying length and frequency. Additionally, participants completed oculomotor (pro-/anti-saccades) and linguistic tasks (word/picture naming), the latter containing the same item material as the reading task. Results revealed a 36% increase of reading efficiency. Younger readers utilized a global refixation strategy to gain more time for word decoding. Linguistic rather than oculomotor skills determined the development of reading abilities, although naming latencies of fourth graders did not reliably reflect word decoding processes in normal sentence reading.

The role of global top-down factors in local eye-movement control in reading

Although the development of the field of reading has been impressive, there are a number of issues that still require much more attention. One of these concerns the variability of skilled reading within the individual. This paper explores the topic in three ways: (1) it quantifies the extent to which, two factors, the specific reading task (comprehension vs. word verification) and the format of reading material (sentence vs. passage) influence the temporal aspects of reading as expressed in word-viewing durations; (2) it examines whether they also affect visuomotor aspects of eye-movement control; and (3) determine whether they can modulate local lexical processing. The results reveal reading as a dynamic, interactive process involving semi-autonomous modules, with top-down influences clearly evident in the eye-movement record.

Dual-Task Crosstalk Between Saccades and Manual Responses

Between-task crosstalk has been discussed as an important source for dual-task costs. In this study, the authors examine concurrently performed saccades and manual responses as a means of studying the role of response-code conflict between 2 tasks. In Experiment 1, participants responded to an imperative auditory stimulus with a left or a right key press (manual task), a left or a right saccade (saccade task), or both. In Experiments 2 and 3, participants crossed their hands, and a modest (Experiment 2) or substantial (Experiment 3) degree of between-task response-code conflict through specific instructions was introduced. In Experiment 4, response codes across tasks were compatible, and stimulus-response mappings in both tasks were incompatible. Overall, the results indicate that performance not only in manual responses but also in saccades suffers from dual-task conditions, even though saccades were typically performed first and are usually assumed to be controlled quite independently. Moreover, the systematic introduction of response-code conflict between tasks modulated the pattern of dual-task performance. The authors propose confusability of response codes as an underlying mechanism of the observed effects of between-task crosstalk.

Visual search in long-term cannabis users with early age of onset

The present research tested the hypothesis that there is a specific deficit in visual scanning in chronic users of cannabis with early onset of their drug consumption (age 14 to 16). 17 users and 20 control participants were asked to search for targets on a 5 x 5 stimulus array while their eye movements were monitored. Cannabis users showed less effective search behavior, including longer response times and more fixations at about the same error level. Search patterns were more conservative and included more frequent reinspections of previously fixated areas. In sum, the results point to two loci of adverse effects: an impairment in visual short-term memory, and less effective visual processing at a more strategic, top down controlled level.

Crossmodal action selection: Evidence from dual-task compatibility

Response-related mechanisms of multitasking were studied by analyzing simultaneous processing of responses in different modalities (i.e., crossmodal action). Participants responded to a single auditory stimulus with a saccade, a manual response (single-task conditions), or both (dual-task condition). We used a spatially incompatible stimulus-response mapping for one task, but not for the other. Critically, inverting these mappings varied temporal task overlap in dual-task conditions while keeping spatial incompatibility across responses constant. Unlike previous paradigms, temporal task overlap was manipulated without utilizing sequential stimulus presentation, which might induce strategic serial processing. The results revealed dual-task costs, but these were not affected by an increase of temporal task overlap. This finding is evidence for parallel response selection in multitasking. We propose that crossmodal action is processed by a central mapping-selection mechanism in working memory and that the dual-task costs are mainly caused by mapping-related crosstalk.

Crossmodal action: modality matters

Research on multitasking harkens back to the beginnings of cognitive psychology. The central question has always been how we manage to perform multiple actions at the same time. Here, we highlight the role of specific inputand output-modalities involved in coordinating multiple action demands (i.e., crossmodal action). For a long time, modalityand content-blind models of multitasking have dominated theory, but a variety of recent findings indicate that modalities and content substantially determine performance. Typically, the term ‘‘input modality’’ refers to sensory channels (e.g., visual input is treated differently from auditory input), and the term ‘‘output modality’’ is closely associated with effector systems (e.g., hand vs. foot movements). However, this definition may be too narrow. The term ‘‘input modality’’ sometimes refers to a dimension within a sensory channel (e.g., shape/color in vision). Furthermore, the linkage between output-modalities and effector systems may not be specific enough to illuminate some notorious twilight zones (e.g., to distinguish between hand and wrist movements). As a consequence, we will use ‘‘modality’’ as an umbrella term here to capture various sources of stimulus variability used to differentiate the task-relevant information and sources of motor variability used to differentiate responses. Many of the pioneering studies involved the observation of dual-task performance in two continuous tasks that typically consisted of complex action sequences (e.g., reading and writing, see Solomons & Stein, 1896; Spelke, Hirst, & Neisser, 1976). However, it soon became apparent that tighter experimental control was necessary to pinpoint the specific cognitive mechanisms supporting multitasking. The PRP paradigm: an experimental breakthrough. The development of the psychological refractory period (PRP) paradigm (Telford, 1931; Welford, 1952) provided a methodological breakthrough that allowed researchers to exactly control the flow of information in both tasks. The PRP paradigm involves two elementary tasks with a limited set of clearly defined stimuli and responses. The mechanisms underlying multitasking are studied by systematically manipulating the temporal overlap of the two tasks, which is achieved by varying the delay between the presentations of the stimuli for the two tasks (stimulus onset asynchrony, SOA). The PRP effect refers to the typical finding that reaction times (RTs) for the second task increase with decreasing SOA, an effect that has been replicated in numerous studies with a variety of stimulus and response modalities (see Bertelson, 1966; Pashler, 1994; Smith, 1967). The RSB model: a powerful explanatory concept? The most influential and elegant account of the PRP effect has been the response selection bottleneck (RSB) model (Telford, 1931; Welford, 1952). A starting assumption of the RSB model is that tasks at hand can be divided into three successive cognitive processing steps, namely perceptual processing (i.e., stimulus encoding/categorization), response selection (i.e., deciding which response corresponds to the stimulus according to the task rules), and response execution processes. In a number of experiments, the duration of each of these processing stages was systematically manipulated for each of the two tasks (see Pashler, 1994). As a result, the most convincing hypothesis to accommodate the corresponding findings was the assumption that perceptual processing and response L. Huestegge (&) RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany e-mail: lynn.huestegge@psych.rwth-aachen.de

Gender-specific contribution of a visual cognition network to reading abilities

Based on the assumption that boys are more likely to tackle reading based on the visual modality, we assessed reading skills, visual short-term memory (VSTM), visual long-term memory for details (VLTM-D), and general non-verbal cognitive ability in primary school children. Reading was within the normal range in both accuracy and understanding. There was no reading performance gap in favour of girls, on the contrary, in this sample boys read better. An entire array of visual, non-verbal processes was associated directly or indirectly with reading in boys, whereas this pattern was not observed for the girls.

Carryover Effects of Highly Automated Convoy Driving on Subsequent Manual Driving Performance

Objective: In the present study, we tested to what extent highly automated convoy driving involving small spacing (“platooning”) may affect time headway (THW) and standard deviation of lateral position (SDLP) during subsequent manual driving. Background: Although many previous studies have reported beneficial effects of automated driving, some research has also highlighted potential drawbacks, such as increased speed and reduced THW during the activation of semiautomated driving systems. Here, we rather focused on the question of whether switching from automated to manual driving may produce unwanted carryover effects on safety-relevant driving performance. Method: We utilized a pre–post simulator design to measure THW and SDLP after highly automated driving and compared the data with those for a control group (manual driving throughout). Results: Our data revealed that THW was reduced and SDLP increased after leaving the automation mode. A closer inspection of the data suggested that specifically the effect on THW is likely due to sensory and/or cognitive adaptation processes. Conclusion: Behavioral adaptation effects need to be taken into account in future implementations of automated convoy systems. Application: Potential application areas of this research comprise automated freight traffic (truck convoys) and the design of driver assistance systems in general. Potential countermeasures against following at short distance as behavioral adaptation should be considered.

The role of saccades in multitasking: towards an output-related view of eye movements

The present paper presents an overview of research on the role of saccades in multitasking. Multitasking is known to cause performance costs in terms of increased response times and/or error rates. However, most of the previous research on multitasking was focused on manual and vocal action demands, and the role of eye movements has been largely neglected. As a consequence, saccade execution was mainly considered with respect to its functional role in gathering new visual information (input side of information processing). However, several more recent experiments confirmed that saccades both exhibit and cause dual-task costs in the context of other actions and should thus also be regarded as a response modality (output side of information processing). Theoretical implications as well as several open issues for future research will be outlined.

Pushing the rules: effects and aftereffects of deliberate rule violations

Most of our daily life is organized around rules and social norms. But what makes rules so special? And what if one were to break a rule intentionally? Can we simply free us from the present set of rules or do we automatically adhere to them? How do rule violations influence subsequent behavior? To investigate the effects and aftereffects of violating simple S-R rule, we conducted three experiments that investigated continuous finger-tracking responses on an iPad. Our experiments show that rule violations are distinct from rule-based actions in both response times and movement trajectories, they take longer to initiate and execute, and their movement trajectory is heavily contorted. Data not only show differences between the two types of response (rule-based vs. violation), but also yielded a characteristic pattern of aftereffects in case of rule violations: rule violations do not trigger adaptation effects that render further rule violations less difficult, but every rule violation poses repeated effort on the agent. The study represents a first step towards understanding the signature and underlying mechanisms of deliberate rule violations, they cannot be acted out by themselves, but require the activation of the original rule first. Consequently, they are best understood as reformulations of existing rules that are not accessible on their own, but need to be constantly derived from the original rule, with an add-on that might entail an active tendency to steer away from mental representations that reflect (socially) unwanted behavior.