Review of Art and Visual Perception.

Reviews the book "Art and visual perception," by Rudolph Arnheim (see record 1955-03680-000). In reading this book, one realizes why more psychologists have not been concerned with art. Art is a technical specialty in its own right and one must be expert both in psychology and in either creative art or the history of art to write on art. Arnheim's book brings the scientific knowledge of a trained psychologist to bear on the fundamental problems of visual art as it has developed through the ages. The discussion is always with reference to concrete works of art. Many original drawings, diagrams, and figures illustrate basic principles and important points. The writing is superb. The book is full of penetrating insights into questions of art and also into many problems of concern to the psychologist. Fundamentally this book is an argument against the usual art historian's approach, so well described by Arnheim as the purely subjective point of view, that what a person sees in a work of art "depends entirely on who he is, what he is interested in, what he has experienced in the past, and how he chooses to direct his attention". A book which reflects so well the author's urbanity, catholicity, and keenness of mind, as well as his technical grasp of the scientific and the artistic, is no small achievement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Estimating heading during real and simulated eye movements

The ability to judge heading during tracking eye movements has recently been examined by several investigators. To assess the use of retinal-image and extra-retinal information in this task, the previous work has compared heading judgments with executed as opposed to simulated eye movements. For eye movement velocities greater than 1 deg/sec, observers seem to require the eye-velocity information provided by extra-retinal signals that accompany tracking eye movements. When those signals are not provided, such as with simulated eye movements, observers perceive their self-motion as curvilinear translation rather than the linear translation plus eye rotation being presented. The interpretation of the previous results is complicated, however, by the fact that the simulated eye movement condition may have created a conflict between two possible estimates of the heading: one based on extra-retinal solutions and the other based on retina-image solutions. In four experiments, we minimized this potential conflict by having observers judge heading in the presence of rotations consisting of mixtures of executed and simulated eye movements. The results showed that the heading is estimated more accurately when rotational flow is created by executed eye movements alone. In addition, the magnitude of errors in heading estimates is essentially proportional to the amount of rotational flow created by a simulated eye rotation (independent of the total magnitude of the rotational flow). The fact that error magnitude is proportional to the amount of simulated rotation suggests that the visual system attributes rotational flow unaccompanied by an eye movement to a displacement of the direction of translation in the direction of the simulated eye rotation.     

Word recognition and syntactic attachment in reading: Evidence for a staged architecture.

In 3 experiments, the author examined how readers' eye movements are influenced by joint manipulations of a word's frequency and the syntactic fit of the word in its context. In the critical conditions of the first 2 experiments, a high- or low-frequency verb was used to disambiguate a garden-path sentence, while in the last experiment, a high- or low-frequency verb constituted a phrase structure violation. The frequency manipulation always influenced the early eye movement measures of first-fixation duration and gaze duration. The context manipulation had a delayed effect in Experiment 1, influencing only the probability of a regressive eye movement from later in the sentence. However, the context manipulation influenced the same early eye movement measures as the frequency effect in Experiments 2 and 3, though there was no statistical interaction between the effects of these variables. The context manipulation also influenced the probability of a regressive eye movement from the verb, though the frequency manipulation did not. These results are shown to confirm predictions emerging from the serial, staged architecture for lexical and integrative processing of the E–Z Reader 10 model of eye movement control in reading (Reichle, Warren, & McConnell, 2009). It is argued, more generally, that the results provide an important constraint on how the relationship between visual word recognition and syntactic attachment is treated in processing models. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relationship between visual attention and eye movements.

Experimental psychologists have recently amassed a great deal of evidence supporting the hypothesis that the visual system can select a particular location over other locations in the visual field for further analysis without overtly orienting the eyes to the selected location. At the same time, we know that during reading and scene perception, the eyes are overtly directed to new regions of the visual field every 200 to 300 msec on average. How are covert shifts of attention and overt movements of the eyes related during complex visual-cognitive tasks? The available evidence from studies of the perceptual span in reading suggests that attention is allocated asymmetrically around the fixation point, with more information acquired in the direction that the eyes are moving. Based on this evidence and evidence from explorations of eye movement control in reading, the author presents a tentative model of the relationship between attention and eye movements, called the Sequential Attention Model. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Attentional processing: The brain's art of mindfulness.

Reviews the book, Attentional processing: The brain's art of mindfulness by David LaBerge (see record 1995-97550-000). David LaBerge has crafted a book on visual attention that will be accessible and interesting to a broad audience, from students doing their first project in cognitive psychology, to accomplished researchers in the field. The goal of the book is to present a coherent cognitive-neuroscience model of attention - a framework within which one can understand the rich database of findings pertaining to visual attention. In some respects, the book is also an overview and synthesis of LaBerge's own work on spatial attention. The first half of the book covers behavioural investigations; the second half covers cognitive-neuroscience investigations. When most books in psychology are tomes with each chapter written by a different author, it was rewarding to review a scientific book that one could conveniently carry in one's hand, written from cover to cover by one author. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Visual search for change in older adults.

Previous research has demonstrated that younger adults are surprisingly poor at detecting substantial changes to visual scenes. Little is known, however, about age differences in this phenomenon. In the 2 experiments reported here, older adults were slower than younger adults in detecting changes to simple visual stimuli. This age difference was beyond what would be expected given known age-related changes in processing speed. Examination of eye movement behavior during the search for change suggested that age-related changes in the useful field of view and degree of cautiousness play a significant role. Speed of processing and 3 age-related eye movement behaviors explained 85% of the variance in change detection latency, eliminating the effect of age. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Right-Wing Authoritarianism.

Reviews the book, Right-Wing Authoritarianism by Bob Altemeyer (1981). This book deals with a particularly timely and troublesome social phenomenon. Rightwing authoritarianism as a political movement appears to be on the rise again in Western democracies. The author is to be commended on not only tackling a difficult and socially relevant topic, but also in being willing to delve into an area of research that has produced a plethora of ambiguous results. The major goal of the author is to provide a conceptual and operational breakthrough by first offering a critique of why previous efforts have been doomed to failure and then providing a constructive alternative program for the study of authoritarianism. In general this goal is successfully achieved. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evidence for a global scanpath strategy in viewing abstract compared with realistic images

Scanpaths, the repetitive sequences of saccadic eye movements, occurred when subjects viewed slide projections of both realistic and abstract art. Variance analysis demonstrated that global/local eye movement indices were lower for local scanning by professional art viewers who relied on more global viewing, particularly in abstract images. Non-professional, unsophisticated subjects carried their local scanpath patterns from realistic images on to abstract images. The blink rate of professional subjects viewing abstract images was also significantly lower, indicating increased visual effort. Non-professional viewers showed no difference in blink rates.     

Dosimetric comparison of centered and off-centered posterior neck electron fields

The effect of visual skills, such as binocularity, on saccadic eye movement test performance is currently unknown. Therefore, the relationship between performance on commonly used clinical saccadic eye movement tests and visual skill was studied in a masked investigation of 181 kindergartners and first graders (mean age 6.25 years) from a middle class, suburban, elementary school near Cleveland, Ohio. The New York State Optometric Association King-Devick saccade test (NYSOA K-D) and the Developmental Eye Movement test (DEM) were employed because they are two commonly used clinical saccadic eye movement tests. A Modified Clinical Technique (MCT) vision screening and Randot stereoacuity test were performed to evaluate other visual skills. Analysis revealed that for the whole study population, total errors on the NYSOA K-D were significantly related to referral on the MCT screening (p = 0.015) and stereoacuity worse than 100 sec arc (p = 0.011). A trend toward significance was also found between DEM ratio and stereoacuity worse than 50 sec arc for the whole study population. However, in the children who passed the MCT, stereoacuity was not found to be significantly related to performance on NYSOA K-D or DEM. Thus, our findings indicate that visual difficulties may affect performance on the NYSOA K-D in this population.     

Eye movements in reading: Perceptual and cognitive processes.

This article discusses the variability of eye movement behavior. The variability exists between readers, so that the average fixation duration for sonic readers my be around 200 ms and for other readers it may be closer to 300 ms; the average saccade length for some readers may be 6 letter spaces, while for others it may be closer lo 10 letter spaces; and some readers rarely regress while others regress quite frequently. These eye movement characteristics can also be influenced by text difficulty; more difficult text leads to longer fixation durations, shorter saccades, and more regressions. More important than the between reader variability is the within reader variability that exists with each of these measures. The article also discusses research on eye movement during reading. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Initial scene representations facilitate eye movement guidance in visual search.

What role does the initial glimpse of a scene play in subsequent eye movement guidance? In 4 experiments, a brief scene preview was followed by object search through the scene via a small moving window that was tied to fixation position. Experiment 1 demonstrated that the scene preview resulted in more efficient eye movements compared with a control preview. Experiments 2 and 3 showed that this scene preview benefit was not due to the conceptual category of the scene or identification of the target object in the preview. Experiment 4 demonstrated that the scene preview benefit was unaffected by changing the size of the scene from preview to search. Taken together, the results suggest that an abstract (size invariant) visual representation is generated in an initial scene glimpse and that this representation can be retained in memory and used to guide subsequent eye movements. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Eye movement monitoring as a process tracing methodology in decision making research.

Over the past half century, research on human decision making has expanded from a purely behaviorist approach that focuses on decision outcomes, to include a more cognitive approach that focuses on the decision processes that occur prior to the response. This newer approach, known as process tracing, has employed various methods, such as verbal protocols, information search displays, and eye movement monitoring, to identify and track psychological events that occur prior to the response (such as cognitive states, stages, or processes). In the present article, we review empirical studies that have employed eye movement monitoring as a process tracing method in decision making research, and we examine the potential of eye movement monitoring as a process tracing methodology. We also present an experiment that further illustrates the experimental manipulations and analysis techniques that are possible with modern eye tracking technology. In this experiment, a gaze-contingent display was used to manipulate stimulus exposure during decision making, which allowed us to test a specific hypothesis about the role of eye movements in preference decisions (the Gaze Cascade model; Shimojo, Simion, Shimojo, & Scheier, 2003). The results of the experiment did not confirm the predictions of the Gaze Cascade model, but instead support the idea that eye movements in these decisions reflect the screening and evaluation of decision alternatives. In summary, we argue that eye movement monitoring is a valuable tool for capturing decision makers' information search behaviors, and that modern eye tracking technology is highly compatible with other process tracing methods such as retrospective verbal protocols and neuroimaging techniques, and hence it is poised to be an integral part of the next wave of decision research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of items in working memory on the deployment of attention and the eyes during visual search.

Paying attention to an object facilitates its storage in working memory. The authors investigate whether the opposite is also true: whether items in working memory influence the deployment of attention. Participants performed a search for a prespecified target while they held another item in working memory. In some trials this memory item was present in the search display as a distractor. Such a distractor has no effect on search time if the search target is in the display. In that case, the item in working memory is unlikely to be selected as a target for an eye movement, and if the eyes do land on it, fixation duration is short. In the absence of the target, however, there is a small but significant effect of the memory item on search time. The authors conclude that the target for visual search has a special status in working memory that allows it to guide attention. Guidance of attention by other items in working memory is much weaker and can be observed only if the search target is not present in the display. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Recent studies of eye movements in reading.

Grouping the studies under the general topic headings of techniques of measurement, analysis of the reading process, training to improve eye movements, typography and eye movements, and eye movements and fatigue the author reviews the relevant research literature which has appeared since January, 1945. In general there has been a dimunition of interest in this area. However, there has appeared a large amount of work on visual fixation, speed of eye movements, reaction time of the eye, oculomotor efficiency, and vision during eye movements. There is a need for more basic research. 72-item bibliography. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Lorrin Andrews Riggs (1912-2008).

Lorrin Andrews Riggs was a leading scholar in the field of visual psychophysics and physiology. His research brought new understanding to the functioning of the visual system, and his numerous students have continued to make notable contributions to visual science. Although he received an extraordinary number of professional honors during his lifetime, he remained a humble scientist and congenial colleague and friend. Lorrin Riggs died on April 10, 2008, in Hanover. He was 95. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Eye movements in reading and information processing.

Reviews studies of eye movements in reading and other information-processing tasks such as picture viewing, visual search, and problem solving. The major emphasis of the review is on reading as a specific example of the more general phenomenon of cognitive processing. Basic topics discussed are the perceptual span, eye guidance, integration across saccades, control of fixation durations, individual differences, and eye movements as they relate to dyslexia and speed reading. In addition, eye movements and the use of peripheral vision and scan paths in picture perception, visual search, and pattern recognition are discussed, as is the role of eye movements in visual illusion. The basic theme of the review is that eye movement data reflect the cognitive processes occurring in a particular task. Theoretical and practical considerations concerning the use of eye movement data are also presented. (7? p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Duration of movements in a dial setting task as a function of the precision of manipulation.

Pertaining to the art of industrial time study practices and a more complete understanding of human manual movements, the effects of precision as a variable on movement duration was studied. "Ss were required to adjust alternately each of two dials on a control panel." 24 right handed naval enlisted men served as Ss. "The precision required to adjust each dial was systematically varied and the effects of this variation on the durations of four parts of the control movement were determined… . Results clearly demonstrated that the time taken by operators to move between adjustments depended on the precision requirements of those adjustments… . Results provide additional evidence to refute the concept that a work cycle consists of an additive combination of independent elements." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Eye movements in reading and information processing: 20 years of research

Recent studies of eye movements in reading and other information processing tasks, such as music reading, typing, visual search, and scene perception, are reviewed. The major emphasis of the review is on reading as a specific example of cognitive processing. Basic topics discussed with respect to reading are (a) the characteristics of eye movements, (b) the perceptual span, (c) integration of information across saccades, (d) eye movement control, and (e) individual differences (including dyslexia). Similar topics are discussed with respect to the other tasks examined. The basic theme of the review is that eye movement data reflect moment-to-moment cognitive processes in the various tasks examined. Theoretical and practical considerations concerning the use of eye movement data are also discussed.     

The directional effects of passive eye movement on the directional visual responses of single units in the pigeon optic tectum

We have investigated the visual responses of 184 single units located in the superficial layers of the optic tectum (OT) of the decerebrate, paralysed pigeon. Visual responses were similar to those reported in non-decerebrate preparations; most units responded best to moving visual stimuli, 18% were directionally selective (they had a clear preference for a particular direction of visual stimulus movement), 76% were plane-selective (they responded to movement in either direction in a particular plane). However, we also found that a high proportion of units showed some sensitivity to the orientation of visual stimuli. We examined the effects of extraocular muscle (EOM) afferent signals, induced by passive eye movement (PEM), on the directional visual responses of units. Visual responses were most modified by particular directions of eye movement, although there was no unique relationship between the direction of visual stimulus movement to which an individual unit responded best and the direction of eye movement that caused the greatest modification of that visual response. The results show that EOM afferent signals, carrying information concerning the direction of eye movement, reach the superficial layers of the OT in the pigeon and there modify the visual responses of units in a manner that suggests some role for these signals in the processing of visual information.     

Review of Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing: Basic principles, protocols, and procedures.

Reviews the book, Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing: Bask principles, protocols, and procedures by Francine Shapiro (1995). This text is a carefully crafted, almost 400 page book on the theory, mechanisms and workings of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). Francine Shapiro espouses much of what is important in psychotherapy and puts aside much of what has been controversial as she describes EMDR. Simply put, this work is the best representation of the procedure to date. For the clinician who uses this procedure, this book is a must. It outlines its necessary ingredients, standard problems, newer uses, typical mistakes, and changes (over its six year oddessy). Several strengths are noteworthy, including EMDR's painstaking assessment of the client, client safety factors, client preparation, as well as the importance of identifying the moving goalpost of "best" targets, needed cognitions, emotions, and sensations. Importantly too, the focus of EMDR is targets and not disorders. Implied but important to underscore, EMDR applies an essential rubric of psychotherapy, the nondirective unfolding of the client according to a least restrictive principle of intervention (by the therapist). EMDR seems to have this down well. If movement is present, the therapist remains truly nondirective, and uses simple rules; if not, a more active "therapeutic intervention" is called for. A procedure that can perform these tasks and do this in a user-friendly manner is not easy to find. This book highlights this unfolding dynamic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)