Effects of reappearance of fixated and attended stimuli upon saccadic reaction time (original) (raw)

Summary

The effects of visual attention and fixation upon the distribution of saccadic latencies: express (E-), fast regular (FR-), and slow regular (SR-) saccades were investigated. Extinguishing a fixation or an attention point 200–300 ms before target onset increases the incidence of E-saccades while concurrently decreasing the proportion of SR-saccades. Since this extinction forces a disengaging of attention, these changes in relative proportions of saccades reflect the elimination of one of the steps involved in programming saccades. It is shown that a previously attended stimulus has a favored status relative to other stimuli in the visual field. If, after being turned off, the previously attended fixation point or a peripheral attention stimulus is turned on near the time of the target's appearance, the occurrence of the E-saccades is greatly reduced. However, the appearance of any other stimulus in the visual field at or near the time of the target onset does not inhibit E-saccades. Contrary to the conclusions reached by Posner and Cohen (1984), a stimulus presented at the formerly attended location can attract attention more efficiently than a stimulus presented at another, new location.

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Authors and Affiliations

1. Institute for Medical Research, 2260 Clove Dr., 95128, San Jose, CA, USA
   D. Braun
2. Neurologische Universitätsklinik, Hansastr. 9, D-7800, Freiburg, Federal Republic of Germany
   D. Braun
3. Department of Psychology, University of Houston, 77004, Houston, TX, USA
   B. G. Breitmeyer

Authors

1. D. Braun
2. B. G. Breitmeyer

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Braun, D., Breitmeyer, B.G. Effects of reappearance of fixated and attended stimuli upon saccadic reaction time.Exp Brain Res 81, 318–324 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00228122

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• Received: 15 February 1989
• Accepted: 16 February 1990
• Issue date: July 1990
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00228122

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