The influence of uncertainty and validity of expectation on the perceptual decision of motion direction

doi:10.3724/SP.J.1041.2022.00595

Abstract

Abstract:

Motion stimuli in the environment are often changeable, and better direction perception needs to rely on both current information and prior information. However, it is not clear how the uncertainty of current stimuli and the expected validity of prior cues are integrated in the decision-making of motion direction perception. The research adopted the random dot motion paradigm, which requires the participants to judge the overall motion direction of the dots. The dots with the same direction are coherent dots, and the lower the proportion, the higher the uncertainty. Experiment 1 compared the perception accuracy under different coherence dots ratios. According to the results of Experiment 1, 20% and 60% of coherent dots are selected to correspond to the high and low uncertainty levels of scattered dots in Experiment 2, respectively. Experiment 2 compared the perception accuracy under high and low uncertainty and high and low expectation validity (the probability that cues correctly predict targets). The results showed that with the decrease of uncertainty and the increase of expectation validity, the perception accuracy was significantly improved; the expectation effect (the difference of perception accuracy between high and low validity) increased with the increase of uncertainty. The results prove that prior information and sensory information can be integrated in motion direction perception decision. The research provides empirical support for the viewpoint that predictive and reactive control work together under the dual mechanisms of control (DMC) theory, and also provides theoretical basis for the explanation and prevention of traffic accidents.

Key words: expectation effect, uncertainty, directional perceptual decision, RDPs, cognitive control

PAN Yuean, JIANG Yunpeng, GUO Maojie, WU Xia. (2022). The influence of uncertainty and validity of expectation on the perceptual decision of motion direction. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 54(6), 595-603.

Figures/Tables 5

Figure 1. Procedure of Experiment 1.

Figure 2. Average P_R (standard error) of response accuracy under different coherent dot ratios.
Note. *p < 0.05 ***p < 0.001

Figure 3. Procedure of Experiment 2.

Table 1. The response accuracy PR (M ± SD, %) under different conditions

P_R	High uncertainty	Low uncertainty
High validity	57.06 ± 17.41	91.49 ± 2.43
Low validity	46.97 ± 9.60	89.9 ± 3.35

Figure 4. Average P_R (standard error) of response accuracy under different conditions.
Note. *p < 0.05 ***p < 0.001

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