Similar effects of visual perception and imagery on simple reaction time

A longstanding issue is whether perception and mental imagery share similar cognitive and neural mechanisms. To cast further light on this problem, we compared the effects of real and mentally generated visual stimuli on simple reaction time (RT). In five experiments, we tested the effects of difference in luminance, contrast, spatial frequency, motion, and orientation. With the intriguing exception of spatial frequency, in all other tasks perception and imagery showed qualitatively similar effects. An increase in luminance, contrast, and visual motion yielded a decrease in RT for both visually presented and imagined stimuli. In contrast, gratings of low spatial frequency were responded to more quickly than those of higher spatial frequency only for visually presented stimuli. Thus, the present study shows that basic dependent variables exert similar effects on visual RT either when retinally presented or when imagined. Of course, this evidence does not necessarily imply analogous mechanisms for perception and imagery, and a note of caution in such respect is suggested by the large difference in RT between the two operations. However, the present results undoubtedly provide support for some overlap between the structural representation of perception and imagery.     

表象预期调控生物运动性别信息的识别

生物运动系在运动的生物体身的关键节点安置12～15个光点的运动痕迹形成的动画。研究表明光点生物运动包含了丰富的社会性信息,其社会性信息的识别涉及多个心理活动过程,其中大脑自上而下的知觉调控过程发挥重要作用。本研究通过两个实验探讨了表象预期在大脑自上而下调控光点生物运动性别信息识别的作用。结果发现：（1）表象预期能够加快男性生物运动的性别识别速度;想象中性形象被试倾向于将性别中立的生物运动识别为中性,而较少为男性或者女性。（2）表象预期条件和无表象预期条件下性别中立的光点生物运动性别类型识别都表现出“男性偏差”现象。（3）反应类型能够影响生物运动的性别识别。本研究有利于揭示大脑自上而下调控光点生物运动性别信息识别的心理机制。     

Abilities and strategies of blind and sighted subjects in visuo-spatial imagery

An active visuo-spatial memory task was used in order to determine the characteristics of mental imagery in subjects with and without visual experience. Subjects were instructed to generate a mental representation of verbally presented 2D patterns that were placed in a grid and to indicate how many pattern elements were in corresponding positions in the two halves of the grid according to a specific grid axis (vertical or horizontal). Unexpectedly, results showed a similar performance in early blind, late blind and sighted subjects. However, subjects' debriefing showed that the three groups used different strategies. The sighted and the late blind subjects took advantage of a visuo-spatial strategy. They generated a mental image of the matrix and they simplified this image to maintain only the relevant information in memory. In contrast, the early blind subjects encoded each pattern element by its location in a (X,Y) coordinate system without visual representation. This indicates that both early and late blind subjects are able to perform an active visuo-spatial imagery task as well as sighted subjects although they use different strategies.     

Imagery Value,Subjective and Objective Frequency,Date of Entry into the Language,and Degree of Polysemy in a Sample of 998 French Words

A random sample of 998 lexical words was drawn from a dictionary of the French language. Two groups of subjects rated the words for imagery value (IV) and subjective frequency (SF). Despite substantial individual differences in the ratings, the subjective measures were highly reliable (α = 0.98 for both IV and SF). The relation between the standard deviation and the mean of the ratings can be described by a quadratic function (R = 0.93 for IV and R = 0.75 for SF). The independence of IV and frequency was confirmed. IV was found to be partially dependent on grammatical category (η = 0.50) and slightly dependent on polysemy. Date of entry into the language (DE) was correlated with objective and subjective frequency. The correlation between DE and IV was weak. The words and their characteristics are presented in the Appendix.     

生物反馈放松训练和表象训练在飞行训练中的应用研究

本研究试用生物反馈放松训练和表象训练相结合方法,减轻飞行学员的精神紧张及有关的生理反应、２６名２０—２２岁的男性飞行学员,实验、对照组各１３名、实验组学员每次飞行后进行一次肌电生物反馈放松训练和起落航线表象训练,共１６次;对照组学员参加日常飞行训练不加任何干预。实验前后实验组及对照组学员进行黑红数字测试,记录其测试前后的血压、心率;第一次升空及单飞考核飞行后也记录他们的血压和心率。结果表明,实验组学员的单飞考核成绩优于对照组;实验织学员单飞考核后的收缩压及第二次黑红数字测试后的收缩压比实验前显著降低;而对照组的前述生理指标无变化。生物反馈放松训练和表象训练能有效地减轻飞行中的紧张情绪及其生理反应,适于在飞行部队应用。     

Object imagery and object identification: object imagers are better at identifying spatially-filtered visual objects

Object imagery refers to the ability to construct pictorial images of objects. Individuals with high object imagery (high-OI) produce more vivid mental images than individuals with low object imagery (low-OI), and they encode and process both mental images and visual stimuli in a more global and holistic way. In the present study, we investigated whether and how level of object imagery may affect the way in which individuals identify visual objects. High-OI and low-OI participants were asked to perform a visual identification task with spatially-filtered pictures of real objects. Each picture was presented at nine levels of filtering, starting from the most blurred (level 1: only low spatial frequencies—global configuration) and gradually adding high spatial frequencies up to the complete version (level 9: global configuration plus local and internal details). Our data showed that high-OI participants identified stimuli at a lower level of filtering than participants with low-OI, indicating that they were better able than low-OI participants to identify visual objects at lower spatial frequencies. Implications of the results and future developments are discussed.     

Analogue Mental Transformations in 3‐Year‐Olds: Introducing a New Mental Rotation Paradigm Suitable for Young Children

Until now, a successful application of the mental rotation paradigm was restricted to children 5 years or older. By contrast, recent findings suggest that even infants can perform mental rotation. Unlike the methods used in infant studies (looking time), our new research paradigm allows for the measurement and interpretation of reaction times. Kindergartners (aged 3–6 years) were presented with a stimulus configuration on a touchscreen and asked to bring a rotated stimulus into an upright position using the shortest path. Mean reaction time (RT) increased linearly with angular disparity. The ensuing linear trend was significant not only for the entire sample but also for the youngest age group analysed separately. To exclude the possibility that linearity was due to movement planning, 3‐year‐olds had to manually rotate a stimulus about the same trajectory without the need for a corresponding mental transformation in a second experiment. Here, no linear trend was observed. These results are interpreted as evidence for an analogue mental transformation in 3‐year‐olds, equal to the transformation processes in older children's and adults' mental rotation. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Generate,maintain, manipulate? Exploring the multidimensional nature of motor imagery

Motor imagery (MI), the mental rehearsal of a motor task, is thought to be a synergistic interaction between processes that allow for the generation, maintenance, and manipulation, of motor images. While our understanding of the multidimensional nature of MI stems from research examining various methods to assess MI ability, limited research has been conducted employing multiple assessments across participants to probe the underlying dimensions of MI. Accordingly, the current study sought to explore the multidimensional nature of MI using an exploratory approach that would allow for the dimensions of imagery to be examined and linked to each assessment measure. Specifically, participants (N = 81) underwent a battery of MI-assessments (including questionnaires, mental chronometry, a hand laterality judgment task, and a MI-based learning task), and data was analyzed via principal component analysis (PCA). Three components resulted, which were named based on which outcome measures loaded on to the component: generation, maintenance, and manipulation of motor images. We further discuss a fourth component, named ‘temporal sequencing’ of motor images, identified via the initial component solution. Concordant with previous research, we highlight the importance of employing multiple measures when assessing imagery ability prior to its use in training. Notably, this work allowed us to link assessments of MI to the different dimensions of MI, informing on the nature of MI.