Target sparing effects in the attentional blink depend on type of stimulus

Evan J. Livesey, Irina M. Harris

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    20 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    In a typical attentional blink (AB) experiment, recognition of the second of two serially presented targets is impaired if it occurs around 200-500 ms after the first. However, recognition for the second item is often intact if the two targets occur consecutively (lag-1 sparing). Recent theories of the AB have placed great emphasis on the presence of lag-1 sparing and protracted sparing effects, where accurate performance is seemingly maintained across three or more targets, provided that they are presented consecutively. Here, we show that the type of stimulus (objects vs. letters) used in rapid serial visual presentation streams has a significant effect on the extent of lag-1 sparing, without a commensurate influence on the AB. In addition, multiple consecutive targets produce strikingly different patterns of sparing for objects and letters. These findings suggest that the processes mediating lag-1 sparing are independent of those underlying the AB.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)2104-2123
    Number of pages20
    JournalAttention, Perception and Psychophysics
    Volume73
    Issue number7
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Oct 2011

    Keywords

    • Attentional blink
    • Extended sparing
    • Lag-1 sparing
    • Object recognition

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