Abstract
Location probability learning—the acquisition of an attentional bias toward locations that frequently contained a search target—shows many characteristics of a search habit. To what degree does it depend on oculomotor control, as might be expected if habit-like attention is grounded in eye movements? Here, we examined the impact of a spatially incompatible oculomotor signal on location probability learning (LPL). On each trial of a visual search task, participants first saccaded toward a unique C-shape, whose orientation determined whether participants should continue searching for a T target among L distractors. The C-shape often appeared in one, “C-rich” quadrant that differed from where the T was frequently located. Experiment 1 showed that participants acquired LPL toward the high-probability, “T-rich” quadrant, an effect that persisted in an unbiased testing phase. Participants were also faster finding the target in the vicinity of the C-shape, but this effect did not persist after the C-shape was removed. Experiment 2 found that the C-shape affected search only when it was task-relevant. Experiment 3 replicated and extended the findings of Experiment 1 using eye tracking. Thus, location probability learning is robust in the face of a spatially incompatible saccade, demonstrating partial independence between experience-guided attention and goal-driven oculomotor control. The findings are in line with the modular view of attention, which conceptualizes the search habit as a high-level process abstracted from eye movements.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1460-1476 |
Number of pages | 17 |
Journal | Attention, Perception, and Psychophysics |
Volume | 84 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jul 2022 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2022, The Psychonomic Society, Inc.
Keywords
- Location probability learning
- Oculomotor control
- Selection history effects
- Spatial attention
- Visual search
PubMed: MeSH publication types
- Journal Article