Representational-Momentum Effects in the Cerebral Hemispheres

Abstract

On each trial, after three squares of different sizes (inducing display) were sequentially presented at central fixation, a target square was briefly lateralized to the right or left hemisphere (RH or LH) of 24 normal right-handed males. Subjects determined whether or not the target differed in size from the third inducing square. Half of the targets that differed were consistent with size changes in the inducing display (e.g., a target smaller than the third square in an inducing display presented in a large-to-small order) and half were inconsistent. Three retention intervals (RIs) between offset of third inducing square and onset of target were used. At the shortest RI, error–rate differences in responding to consistent vs. inconsistent targets, i.e., representational-momentum (RM) effects, were larger in the RH than in the LH, and RM effects in the RH, but not in the LH, were affected by RI.