Saccade latency and warning signals: Stimulus onset, offset, and change as warning events (original) (raw)

Abstract

Two experiments investigated saccade latency to a peripheral target under various warning signal conditions. In Experiment I, the effects of warning stimulus onset, change, and two offset conditions were compared at warning intervals of 0, 100, 300, and 600 msec. Warning stimulus onset, change, and offset were all effective in reducing saccade latency as compared to a no-warning control condition, but warning stimulus offset resulted in shorter saccade latency than onset or change at all warning intervals. Experiment 2 compared onset and offset warning conditions at −300-, −250-, −200-, −150-, −100-, −50-, 0-, and 50-msec intervals. Responses following onset were slower than those following offset at the latter five intervals, while warning onset resulted in slower saccades than no-warning control conditions at −150-, −100-, and −50-msec intervals. These results indicate that the onset of a visual warning signal can have an interfering effect on the programming or execution of a saccade.

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Authors and Affiliations

1. Psychology Department, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 53706, Madison, Wisconsin
   Leonard E. Ross & Susan M. Ross

Authors

1. Leonard E. Ross
2. Susan M. Ross

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This research was supported by USPHS Grant HD08240.

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Ross, L.E., Ross, S.M. Saccade latency and warning signals: Stimulus onset, offset, and change as warning events.Perception & Psychophysics 27, 251–257 (1980). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03204262

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• Received: 05 July 1979
• Accepted: 05 October 1979
• Issue date: May 1980
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03204262

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