Attention operates to select both spatial locations and perceptual objects. However, the specific mechanism by which attention is oriented to objects is not well understood. We examined the means by which object structure constrains the distribution of spatial attention (i.e., a "grouped array"). Using a modified version of the Egly et…

In 3 experiments, the authors investigated the bidirectional coupling of perception and action in the context of object manipulations and motion perception. Participants prepared to grasp an X-shaped object along one of its 2 diagonals and to rotate it in a clockwise or a counterclockwise direction. Action execution had to be delayed until the…

The authors investigated the role of perceptual attunement in an emergency braking task in which participants waited until the last possible moment to slam on the brakes. Effects of the size of the approached object and initial speed on the initiation of braking were used to identify the optical variables on which participants relied at various…

Using the gaze-contingent boundary paradigm with the boundary placed after word n, the experiment manipulated preview of word n + 2 for fixations on word n. There was no preview benefit for 1st-pass reading on word n + 2, replicating the results of K. Rayner, B. J. Juhasz, and S. J. Brown (2007), but there was a preview benefit on the 3-letter…

The authors tested whether the effects of the Ebbinghaus illusion on grasping are corrected during late phases of the movement. Surprisingly, the grasp aperture was corrected neither under no-vision (N = 52) nor under full-vision (N = 48) conditions. The authors show that previous reports of a correction (e.g., S. Glover & P. Dixon, 2002a) are due…

Although the role of memory in visual search is debatable, most researchers agree with a limited-capacity model of memory in visual search. The authors demonstrate the role of memory by replicating previous findings showing that visual search is biased away from old items (previously examined items) and toward new items (nonexamined items).…

Previous research has shown that synchronized flicker can facilitate detection of a single Kanizsa square. The present study investigated the role of temporally structured priming in discrimination tasks involving perceptual relations between multiple Kanizsa-type figures. Results indicate that visual information presented as temporally structured…

D. M. Shaffer and M. K. McBeath (see record 2002-02027-006) plotted the optical trajectories of uncatchable fly balls and concluded that linear optical trajectory is the informational basis of the actions taken to catch these balls. P. McLeod, N. Reed, and Z. Dienes (see record 2002-11140-016) replotted these trajectories in terms of changes in…

Braking to avoid a collision can be controlled by keeping the deceleration required to stop (i.e., ideal deceleration) in the "safe" region below maximum deceleration, but maximum deceleration is not optically specified and can vary as conditions change. When brake strength was manipulated between participants using a simulated braking task, the…