WatanabeNaezSasaki01
From Perceptual Learning Wiki
Contents |
Perceptual learning without perception. (WatanabeNaezSasaki01)
Watanabe, T., J. E. Nanez and Y. Sasaki (2001). "Perceptual learning without perception." Nature 413(6858): 844-8.
Abstract
The brain is able to adapt rapidly and continually to the surrounding environment, becoming increasingly sensitive to important and frequently encountered stimuli. It is often claimed that this adaptive learning is highly task-specific, that is, we become more sensitive to the critical signals in the tasks we attend to. Here, we show a new type of perceptual learning, which occurs without attention, without awareness and without any task relevance. Subjects were repeatedly presented with a background motion signal so weak that its direction was not visible; the invisible motion was an irrelevant background to the central task that engaged the subject's attention. Despite being below the threshold of visibility and being irrelevant to the central task, the repetitive exposure improved performance specifically for the direction of the exposed motion when tested in a subsequent suprathreshold test. These results suggest that a frequently presented feature sensitizes the visual system merely owing to its frequency, not its relevance or salience.
Keywords
Adult; Attention/physiology; Brain/physiology; Human; Learning/physiology; Models, Neurological; Motion Perception/physiology; Sensory Thresholds
Other Information
Web page of Takeo Watanabe.
Web page of Jose E. Nanez, Sr.
Web page of Yuka Sasaki
See also Papers by year
