The influence of cognitive load on visual perceptual processing

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event The influence of cognitive load on visual perceptual processing Ping Liu1*, Luca Cocchi2, Jason Forte1, David K. Sewell1 and Olivia Carter1 1 The University of Melbourne, School of Psychological Science, Australia 2 University of Queensland, Queensland Brain Institute, Australia Contrary to the majority of dual-task studies, recent studies show that when observers were holding information in working memory, performance on an unrelated visual perceptual task (e.g., grouping-by-proximity) was improved (increased accuracy & reduced reaction time)(Cocchi et al., 2011). These results suggest cognitive control mechanisms supporting working memory may facilitate concurrent but independent visual perceptual processing. To further explore the nature of perceptual facilitation as a function of cognitive load, two studies were run exploring whether cognitive load could influence sensitivity to low-contrast stimuli or modulate surround suppression mechanisms in low-level visual processing. A contrast detection task was employed in the first study, where participants were asked to judge the orientation (horizontal vs. vertical) of a small Gabor of various contrasts presented at one of the four corners of an imaginary square. A visual motion discrimination task eliciting surround-suppression was used in the second study, where participants were asked to judge the motion direction (left vs. right) of a large high-contrast drifting Gabor of various exposure durations presented at fovea. In both studies, the perceptual tasks were conducted during a concurrent no-, low- and high-working memory load task. Preliminary results of the first experiment showed no difference in the contrast thresholds for the detection task across conditions, suggesting that cognitive load does not enhance low-level visual perceptual processing. With data analysis for the second study ongoing, a reduction or increase in exposure thresholds for the motion task under working memory loads would suggest cognitive load either reduces or increases visual surround-suppression respectively. References Cocchi, L., Toepel, U., De Lucia, M., Martuzzi, R., Wood, S. J., Carter, O., and Murray, M. (2011). Working memory load improves early stages of independent visual processing. Neuropsychologia 49, 92-102. Keywords: dual-task performance, cognitive control, top-down modulation, working memory, Visual Perception Conference: ACNS-2012 Australasian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference, Brisbane, Australia, 29 Nov - 2 Dec, 2012. Presentation Type: Poster Presentation Topic: Sensation and Perception Citation: Liu P, Cocchi L, Forte J, Sewell DK and Carter O (2012). The influence of cognitive load on visual perceptual processing. Conference Abstract: ACNS-2012 Australasian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference. doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2012.208.00079 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 25 Oct 2012; Published Online: 07 Nov 2012. * Correspondence: Miss. Ping Liu, The University of Melbourne, School of Psychological Science, Melbourne, Australia, virliu@unimelb.edu.au Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Ping Liu Luca Cocchi Jason Forte David K Sewell Olivia Carter Google Ping Liu Luca Cocchi Jason Forte David K Sewell Olivia Carter Google Scholar Ping Liu Luca Cocchi Jason Forte David K Sewell Olivia Carter PubMed Ping Liu Luca Cocchi Jason Forte David K Sewell Olivia Carter Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.