Abstract
The span of the effective stimulus during visual search through an unstructured alphanumeric array was investigated by using eye-contingent-display changes while the subjects searched for a target letter. In one condition, a window exposing the search array moved in synchrony with the subjects’ eye movements, and the size of the window was varied. Performance reached asymptotic levels when the window was 5°. In another condition, a foveal mask moved in synchrony with each eye movement, and the size of the mask was varied. The foveal mask conditions were much more detrimental to search behavior than the window conditions, indicating the importance of foveal vision during search. The size of the array also influenced performance, but performance reached asymptote for all array sizes tested at the same window size, and the effect of the foveal mask was the same for all array sizes. The results indicate that both acuity and difficulty of the search task influenced the span of the effective stimulus during visual search.
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This research was supported by Grants HD 12727 and HD26765 from the National Institutes of Health and a grant from the Army Research Institute. The second author was supported by a Research Scientist award (MH01255) from the National Institute of Mental Health.
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Bertera, J.H., Rayner, K. Eye movements and the span of the effective stimulus in visual search. Perception & Psychophysics 62, 576–585 (2000). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03212109
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03212109