Abstract
Visual attention is modulated by simulated viewing distance: Where one looks affects how one attends. For example, Song et al. (VSS 2016) reported that targets presented at a close apparent distance are detected more quickly and accurately than targets presented at a far apparent distance, even when the retinal characteristics of the targets were equated across distances. However, in that study, closer objects were always located near the plane of fixation. Therefore, it is unclear whether the “near advantage” was based on fixation-centered or observer-centered coordinates: the detectability of visual targets might decrease as a function of the distance from the plane of fixation or as a function of the distance from the observer. The current study differentiates these two alternatives. We measured the detectability of visual targets presented at two eccentricities (12 & 24 deg) and at three simulated distances (9, 18.5, & 37 m). We induced fixation at a constant distance by asking participants to follow a lead car at a distance of approximately 18.5 virtual meters. Hence, targets could appear at a distance that was shorter than the distance to the lead car, at the same distance as the lead car, or beyond the lead car. Preliminary results (N = 12) showed that, at both eccentricities, target detection was best (i.e., highest accuracy & lowest reaction time) when targets appeared at the same distance as the lead car, providing support for the fixation-centered hypothesis. These results provide further support for the idea that distance, even when simulated, modulates attention, and have potential implications for the development of real-world attention aids, such as heads-up displays.
Acknowledgement: National Science and Engineering Research Council