Efficient visual recalibration from either visual or haptic feedback: The importance of being wrong
Efficient visual recalibration from either visual or haptic feedback: The importance of being wrong
The human visual system adapts to the changing statistics of its environment. For example, the light-from-above prior, an assumption that aids the interpretation of ambiguous shading information, can be modified by haptic (touch) feedback. Here we investigate the mechanisms that drive this adaptive learning. In particular, we ask whether visual information can be as effective as haptics in driving visual recalibration and whether increased information (feedback from multiple modalities) induces faster learning.
During several hours’ training, feedback encouraged observers to modify their existing light-from-above assumption. Feedback was: (i) haptic only (ii) haptic and stereoscopic (providing binocular shape information) or (iii) stereoscopic only. In conditions (i) and (ii), haptic information was received intermittently, as observers touched continuously visible objects, similar to normal visual-haptic exploration.
Haptic-only feedback resulted in substantial learning; the perceived shape of shaded objects was modified in accordance with observers’ new light priors. However, the addition of continuous visual feedback (condition ii) substantially reduced learning. When visual-only feedback was provided intermittently (condition iii), mimicking the time-course of previous haptic feedback, substantial learning returned.
The intermittence of conflicting information, or feedback, appears critical for learning. It causes an initial, erroneous percept to be corrected. Contrary to previous proposals, we found no particular advantage for cross-modal feedback. Instead, we suggest that an ‘oops’ factor drives efficient learning; recalibration is prioritised when a mismatch exists between sequential representations of an object property. This ‘oops’ factor appears important both across and within sensory modalities, suggesting a general principle for perceptual learning and recalibration.
14745-14749
Adams, Wendy J.
25685aaa-fc54-4d25-8d65-f35f4c5ab688
Kerrigan, Iona S.
e9cceb6a-06cb-43ff-97f0-14bf9f98d522
Graf, Erich W.
1a5123e2-8f05-4084-a6e6-837dcfc66209
September 2010
Adams, Wendy J.
25685aaa-fc54-4d25-8d65-f35f4c5ab688
Kerrigan, Iona S.
e9cceb6a-06cb-43ff-97f0-14bf9f98d522
Graf, Erich W.
1a5123e2-8f05-4084-a6e6-837dcfc66209
Adams, Wendy J., Kerrigan, Iona S. and Graf, Erich W.
(2010)
Efficient visual recalibration from either visual or haptic feedback: The importance of being wrong.
Journal of Neuroscience, 30 (44), .
(doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2749-10.2010).
Abstract
The human visual system adapts to the changing statistics of its environment. For example, the light-from-above prior, an assumption that aids the interpretation of ambiguous shading information, can be modified by haptic (touch) feedback. Here we investigate the mechanisms that drive this adaptive learning. In particular, we ask whether visual information can be as effective as haptics in driving visual recalibration and whether increased information (feedback from multiple modalities) induces faster learning.
During several hours’ training, feedback encouraged observers to modify their existing light-from-above assumption. Feedback was: (i) haptic only (ii) haptic and stereoscopic (providing binocular shape information) or (iii) stereoscopic only. In conditions (i) and (ii), haptic information was received intermittently, as observers touched continuously visible objects, similar to normal visual-haptic exploration.
Haptic-only feedback resulted in substantial learning; the perceived shape of shaded objects was modified in accordance with observers’ new light priors. However, the addition of continuous visual feedback (condition ii) substantially reduced learning. When visual-only feedback was provided intermittently (condition iii), mimicking the time-course of previous haptic feedback, substantial learning returned.
The intermittence of conflicting information, or feedback, appears critical for learning. It causes an initial, erroneous percept to be corrected. Contrary to previous proposals, we found no particular advantage for cross-modal feedback. Instead, we suggest that an ‘oops’ factor drives efficient learning; recalibration is prioritised when a mismatch exists between sequential representations of an object property. This ‘oops’ factor appears important both across and within sensory modalities, suggesting a general principle for perceptual learning and recalibration.
This record has no associated files available for download.
More information
Published date: September 2010
Organisations:
Cognition
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 164343
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/164343
ISSN: 0270-6474
PURE UUID: c433f771-802c-42c3-b5f2-a726561127c5
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 23 Sep 2010 10:57
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 02:49
Export record
Altmetrics
Contributors
Author:
Iona S. Kerrigan
Download statistics
Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.
View more statistics
