| Abstract: | Seeing one's hand in visual periphery has been shown to optimize the directional accuracy of a sweeping hand movement, which is consistent with J. Paillard's (1980; Paillard and B. Amblard, 1985) two-channels model of visual information processing. However, contrary to this model, seeing one's hand in central vision, even for a brief period of time, also resulted in optimal directional accuracy. In 3 experiments, this study tested two opposing hypotheses proposed to explain the latter finding, and also determined whether additional support could be found for the existence of a visual kinetic channel. Results indicated that seeing one's hand in central vision, even for a very short delay, resulted in the same accuracy as being permitted to see one's hand for the duration of the whole movement. This suggests that seeing one's hand around the target might enable one to code its location and that of the target within a single frame of reference and, thus, facilitate movement planning. In addition, seeing one's hand in motion while in visual periphery permitted a better directional accuracy than when this information was not available, suggesting that the movement vector, which is planned prior to movement initiation, can be quickly updated following movement initiation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
