Multistable perception occurs in all sensory modalities, and there is ongoing theoretical debate about whether there are overarching mechanisms driving multistability across modalities. Here we study whether multistable percepts are coupled across vision and audition on a moment-by-moment basis. To assess perception simultaneously for both modalities without provoking a dual-task situation, we query auditory perception by direct report, while measuring visual perception indirectly via eye movements.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNoise is present in most work environments, including emissions from machines and devices, irrelevant speech from colleagues, and traffic noise. Although it is generally accepted that noise below the permissible exposure limits does not pose a considerable risk for auditory effects like hearing impairments. Yet, noise can have a direct adverse effect on cognitive performance (non-auditory effects like workload or stress).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn multistability, a constant stimulus induces alternating perceptual interpretations. For many forms of visual multistability, the transition from one interpretation to another ("perceptual switch") is accompanied by a dilation of the pupil. Here we ask whether the same holds for auditory multistability, specifically auditory streaming.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn multistability, perceptual interpretations ("percepts") of ambiguous stimuli alternate over time. There is considerable debate as to whether similar regularities govern the first percept after stimulus onset and percepts during prolonged presentation. We address this question in a visual pattern-component rivalry paradigm by presenting two overlaid drifting gratings, which participants perceived as individual gratings passing in front of each other ("segregated") or as a plaid ("integrated").
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