Expected distractor context biases the attentional template for target shapes.

ABSTRACT: Visual search is supported by an internal representation of the target, the attentional template. However, which features are diagnostic of target presence critically depends on the distractors. Accordingly, previous research showed that consistent distractor context shapes the attentional template for simple targets, with the template emphasizing diagnostic dimensions (e.g., color or orientation) in blocks of trials. Here, we investigated how distractor expectations bias attentional templates for complex shapes, and tested whether such biases reflect intertrial priming or can be instantiated flexibly. Participants searched for novel shapes (cued by name) in two probabilistic distractor contexts: Either the target's orientation or rectilinearity was unique (80% validity). Across four exper

SUBMITTER: Lerebourg M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7616464 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature