Murray L Lawson

The visual attentional blink reflects constraints on temporal visual processing, not just a lapse of visual memory.

Background:  Most theories related to the attentional blink (AB), defined as the refractory period of 300 to 500 msecs following a conscious visual identification, during which a second detection task is impaired, argue that limitations of ‘visual working memory’ (VWM) underlie the phenomenon rather than suppression of attention. The current study examined the relationship between performance on an AB task and classical measures of visual and auditory memory and executive function (EF).

Changes in ocular accommodation when shifting between global and local attention

Background: The link between cognitive changes in attentional focus and the physiological parameters of the eye is not well understood. The aim of the current work was to examine the role of ocular accommodation, that is, the process of changing the shape of the crystalline lens in order to focus an image onto the retina, in active shifts of visual attention between global and local information.

Temporal processing of global and local information varies with global precedence

The concept of global precedence, which suggests that the global aspect of a scene is processed more rapidly than local details, was examined using the attentional blink paradigm. Eighteen adult subjects observed multiple sequences of complex global−local letter figures to see whether the attentional blink duration would be affected by the visual angle size of the stimulus. Within each sequence, the subject was directed to identify either a global or local red target letter and to detect whether a global or local probe letter (X) was presented in the sequence following the target letter. Stimuli were presented at three different sizes. Results showed significantly higher probe detection rates for global probes than for local at small stimulus sizes. However, using large stimulus sizes, mean correct probe detection was significantly higher in conditions requiring local attention compared to global. No significant difference in probe detection performance was observed between global and local conditions at medium stimulus sizes. The results suggest that the rate of visual information processing varies according to the visual angle of the particular information. The results support the suggestion that the precedence of information is an important factor in the temporal processing of global−local information.