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The effects of task and saliency on latencies for colour and motion processing

The effects of task and saliency on latencies for colour and motion processing
The effects of task and saliency on latencies for colour and motion processing
In human visual perception, there is evidence that different visual attributes, such as colour, form and motion, have different neural-processing latencies. Specifically, recent studies have suggested that colour changes are processed faster than motion changes. We propose that the processing latencies should not be considered as fixed quantities for different attributes, but instead depend upon attribute salience and the observer's task.
We asked observers to respond to high- and low-salience colour and motion changes in three different tasks. The tasks varied from having a strong motor component to having a strong perceptual component. Increasing salience led to shorter processing times in all three tasks. We also found an interaction between task and attribute: motion was processed more quickly in reaction-time tasks, whereas colour was processed more quickly in more perceptual tasks.
Our results caution against making direct comparisons between latencies for processing different visual attributes without equating salience or considering task effects. More-salient attributes are processed faster than less-salient ones, and attributes that are critical for the task are also processed more quickly.
awareness, visual latency, visual pathways, colour, motion
1471-2954
139-146
Adams, Wendy J.
25685aaa-fc54-4d25-8d65-f35f4c5ab688
Mamassian, Pascal
c8cd94cf-3645-4f60-826c-0d1ab349bb00
Adams, Wendy J.
25685aaa-fc54-4d25-8d65-f35f4c5ab688
Mamassian, Pascal
c8cd94cf-3645-4f60-826c-0d1ab349bb00

Adams, Wendy J. and Mamassian, Pascal (2004) The effects of task and saliency on latencies for colour and motion processing. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 271 (1535), 139-146. (doi:10.1098/rspb.2003.2566).

Record type: Article

Abstract

In human visual perception, there is evidence that different visual attributes, such as colour, form and motion, have different neural-processing latencies. Specifically, recent studies have suggested that colour changes are processed faster than motion changes. We propose that the processing latencies should not be considered as fixed quantities for different attributes, but instead depend upon attribute salience and the observer's task.
We asked observers to respond to high- and low-salience colour and motion changes in three different tasks. The tasks varied from having a strong motor component to having a strong perceptual component. Increasing salience led to shorter processing times in all three tasks. We also found an interaction between task and attribute: motion was processed more quickly in reaction-time tasks, whereas colour was processed more quickly in more perceptual tasks.
Our results caution against making direct comparisons between latencies for processing different visual attributes without equating salience or considering task effects. More-salient attributes are processed faster than less-salient ones, and attributes that are critical for the task are also processed more quickly.

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More information

Published date: 2004
Keywords: awareness, visual latency, visual pathways, colour, motion

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 18640
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/18640
ISSN: 1471-2954
PURE UUID: 806f58b4-92f0-4b1c-bf08-369f9f73c4f6
ORCID for Wendy J. Adams: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-5832-1056

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Date deposited: 18 Jan 2006
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 03:39

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Author: Wendy J. Adams ORCID iD
Author: Pascal Mamassian

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