Abstract
Researchers have long debated whether salient objects can involuntarily capture attention. We recently discovered a new lead: There seems to be a key role of inhibition in the avoidance of attention capture by salient objects. This suppression model has been supported by converging evidence from behavioral, eye tracking, and electrophysiological studies. However, the precise nature of the mechanism underlying these suppression effects is unclear. A large line of research suggests that factors such as scene context or implicit knowledge about the previous trial can play a surprisingly large role in the size of observed capture effects (called selection history). In the current talk, we explore the role of selection history in the suppression of salient items.
Meeting abstract presented at VSS 2018