Adaptation in distance perception induced by audio-visual stimuli with spatial disparity

Abstract

Simultaneous presentation of audio-visual stimuli with disparity leads to perceptual shifts in judgments of the stimulus auditory components (ventriloquism effect, VE). The shifts can persist even to auditory stimuli presented alone (ventriloquism aftereffect, VA). A previous study showed asymmetrical VE and VA for visual adaptors presented closer vs. further than the auditory components [Hladek et al. (2014), Visual calibration of auditory distance perception, ARO #37 Abstract PS-614]. In that study, a brief flash of light (visual adaptor) or noise burst (auditory component) were presented in front of the listener at distances 0.4-2.6 m in a small reverberant room, with visual adaptor 30% closer or further than the auditory component. Here, a new analysis of the results is presented, showing that much of the previously observed asymmetries between the two directions of shift (visual-closer vs. visual-farther) can be accounted for by referencing responses to the pre-adaptation baseline, and by scaling the...