Similar but separate systems underlie perceptual bistability in vision and audition
Abstract The dynamics of perceptual bistability, the phenomenon in which perception switches between different interpretations of an unchanging stimulus, are characterised by very similar properties across a wide range of qualitatively different paradigms. This suggests that perceptual switching may...
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doaj-595d78ec25964218a6818a42d80a9e392020-12-08T03:37:20ZengNature Publishing GroupScientific Reports2045-23222018-05-018111010.1038/s41598-018-25587-2Similar but separate systems underlie perceptual bistability in vision and auditionSusan L. Denham0Dávid Farkas1Raymond van Ee2Mihaela Taranu3Zsuzsanna Kocsis4Marina Wimmer5David Carmel6István Winkler7University of Plymouth, Cognition Institute and School of PsychologyInstitute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, Research Centre of Natural Sciences, Hungarian Academy of SciencesRadboud University, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Biophysics/85 PO Box 9010University of Plymouth, Cognition Institute and School of PsychologyInstitute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, Research Centre of Natural Sciences, Hungarian Academy of SciencesUniversity of Plymouth, Cognition Institute and School of PsychologyUniversity of Edinburgh, Department of PsychologyInstitute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, Research Centre of Natural Sciences, Hungarian Academy of SciencesAbstract The dynamics of perceptual bistability, the phenomenon in which perception switches between different interpretations of an unchanging stimulus, are characterised by very similar properties across a wide range of qualitatively different paradigms. This suggests that perceptual switching may be triggered by some common source. However, it is also possible that perceptual switching may arise from a distributed system, whose components vary according to the specifics of the perceptual experiences involved. Here we used a visual and an auditory task to determine whether individuals show cross-modal commonalities in perceptual switching. We found that individual perceptual switching rates were significantly correlated across modalities. We then asked whether perceptual switching arises from some central (modality-) task-independent process or from a more distributed task-specific system. We found that a log-normal distribution best explained the distribution of perceptual phases in both modalities, suggestive of a combined set of independent processes causing perceptual switching. Modality- and/or task-dependent differences in these distributions, and lack of correlation with the modality-independent central factors tested (ego-resiliency, creativity, and executive function), also point towards perceptual switching arising from a distributed system of similar but independent processes.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-25587-2 |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Susan L. Denham Dávid Farkas Raymond van Ee Mihaela Taranu Zsuzsanna Kocsis Marina Wimmer David Carmel István Winkler |
spellingShingle |
Susan L. Denham Dávid Farkas Raymond van Ee Mihaela Taranu Zsuzsanna Kocsis Marina Wimmer David Carmel István Winkler Similar but separate systems underlie perceptual bistability in vision and audition Scientific Reports |
author_facet |
Susan L. Denham Dávid Farkas Raymond van Ee Mihaela Taranu Zsuzsanna Kocsis Marina Wimmer David Carmel István Winkler |
author_sort |
Susan L. Denham |
title |
Similar but separate systems underlie perceptual bistability in vision and audition |
title_short |
Similar but separate systems underlie perceptual bistability in vision and audition |
title_full |
Similar but separate systems underlie perceptual bistability in vision and audition |
title_fullStr |
Similar but separate systems underlie perceptual bistability in vision and audition |
title_full_unstemmed |
Similar but separate systems underlie perceptual bistability in vision and audition |
title_sort |
similar but separate systems underlie perceptual bistability in vision and audition |
publisher |
Nature Publishing Group |
series |
Scientific Reports |
issn |
2045-2322 |
publishDate |
2018-05-01 |
description |
Abstract The dynamics of perceptual bistability, the phenomenon in which perception switches between different interpretations of an unchanging stimulus, are characterised by very similar properties across a wide range of qualitatively different paradigms. This suggests that perceptual switching may be triggered by some common source. However, it is also possible that perceptual switching may arise from a distributed system, whose components vary according to the specifics of the perceptual experiences involved. Here we used a visual and an auditory task to determine whether individuals show cross-modal commonalities in perceptual switching. We found that individual perceptual switching rates were significantly correlated across modalities. We then asked whether perceptual switching arises from some central (modality-) task-independent process or from a more distributed task-specific system. We found that a log-normal distribution best explained the distribution of perceptual phases in both modalities, suggestive of a combined set of independent processes causing perceptual switching. Modality- and/or task-dependent differences in these distributions, and lack of correlation with the modality-independent central factors tested (ego-resiliency, creativity, and executive function), also point towards perceptual switching arising from a distributed system of similar but independent processes. |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-25587-2 |
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