Hemisphere-specific processing of laterally presented global and local stimulus levels was investigated by (a) examining interactions between the visual field of stimulus presentation and the response hand and (b) comparing intra- with inter-hemispheric effects of level priming (i.e. faster and more accurate performance when the target level…

Previous research has shown that the appearance of task-irrelevant abrupt onsets influences saccadic eye movements during visual search and may slow down manual reactions to target stimuli. Analysis of reaction time distributions in the present study offers evidence suggesting that top-down inhibition processes actively suppress oculomotor or…

This paper reviews two studies of color preference and the relationships between color and legibility. The Gustin study in 1991 dealt with the legibility of and preference for projected slides with colored backgrounds and white text. The order of background color preference was cyan, blue, green, yellow, magenta, and red. The follow-up study by…

Reports three experiments in infant visual perception which studied the processes underlying infants' shifts of fixation from one object to another. (JMB)

Metacontrast has been the subject of two neural network simulations by Weisstein and Bridgeman. This article compared and elaborated on the two models, corrected flaws not inherent in the models' conceptualizations, and discussed the remaining shortcomings. (Editor/RK)

The work described demonstrated that not only do stimulus parameters have systematic effects upon brain activity as measured by the EEG, but that such effects have functional value and reflect aspects of efficiency. (Editor/RK)

This study using the Visual Expectation Paradigm explored ways in which predictability of stimulus location and time of appearance affect the formation of expectations in infants of 3 months. A total of 64 babies were randomly assigned to one of four groups that differed by predictability of stimulus location and time of stimulus appearance.…

Visual components of illustrations were identified to determine the nature of children's preferences in pictures. (JH)

This study investigated the extent of infant peripheral vision, specifically the extent of infants' constricted field, or tunnel vision. Thirteen infants, 2 to 5 months old, were tested using a psychophysical procedure to obtain contrast sensitivity thresholds at four retinal loci (-40, -15, +15, +40 deg.). Infants were placed in an infant bed in…

The effects of posture on the visual behavior of 15 3-day-old healthy, black, newborn infants were assessed. Findings suggest that the vestibular, proprioceptive, and contact stimulation provided by the on-shoulder position affects the newborn's ability to follow and process visual stimuli. (Author/CS)

Variations of the screening method developed by Piaget and Frank made it possible to systematically vary the number and type of perceptual cues in the conservation of liquid quantity task. Results of testing 192 kindergarten and first graders suggest that the development of conservation involves several levels, beginning with a concept which can…

Tests the hypothesis that age-related shifts in infants' visual preferences for stimuli (varying in complexity as defined by number of light-dark intersections) are due to changing attention value both within and between the inversely varying dimensions of size and number. (Author/ED)