Foveal feedback in perceptual processing: Contamination of neural representations and task difficulty effects.

Contemori, Giulio, Oletto, Carolina Maria, Battaglini, Luca, Motterle, Elena and Bertamini, Marco ORCID: 0000-0001-8617-6864 (2023) Foveal feedback in perceptual processing: Contamination of neural representations and task difficulty effects. PloS one, 18 (10). e0291275-e0291275.

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0291275

Abstract

Visual object recognition was traditionally believed to rely on a hierarchical feedforward process. However, recent evidence challenges this notion by demonstrating the crucial role of foveal retinotopic cortex and feedback signals from higher-level visual areas in processing peripheral visual information. The nature of the information conveyed through foveal feedback remains a topic of debate. To address this, we conducted a study employing a foveal mask paradigm with varying stimulus-mask onset asynchronies in a peripheral same/different task, where peripheral objects exhibited different degrees of similarity. Our hypothesis posited that simultaneous arrival of feedback and mask information in the foveal cortex would lead to neural contamination, biasing perception. Notably, when the two peripheral objects were identical, we observed a significant increase in the number of "different" responses, peaking at approximately 100 ms. Similar effect was found when the objects were dissimilar, but with an overall later timing (around 150 ms). No significant difference was found when comparing easy (dissimilar objects) and difficult trials (similar objects). The findings challenge the hypothesis that foveation planning alone accounts for the observed effects. Instead, these and previous observations support the notion that the foveal cortex serves as a visual sketchpad for maintaining and manipulating task-relevant information.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Visual Cortex, Fovea Centralis, Photic Stimulation, Pattern Recognition, Visual, Visual Perception, Feedback
Divisions:	Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Population Health
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	31 Jan 2024 10:28
Last Modified:	31 Jan 2024 10:28
DOI:	10.1371/journal.pone.0291275
Open Access URL:	https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0291275
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3178173