Evidence for a link between the experiential allocation of saccade preparation and visuospatial attention

2012 ◽  
Vol 107 (5) ◽  
pp. 1413-1420 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janis Y. Y. Kan ◽  
Ullanda Niel ◽  
Michael C. Dorris
Keyword(s):  
Threshold Model ◽  
Maximum Level ◽  
Spatial Location ◽  
Visuospatial Attention ◽  
Activity Level ◽  
Saccade Target ◽  
Discrimination Ability ◽  
Visual Probe ◽  
Probe Orientation ◽  
Saccade Preparation

Whether a link exists between the two orienting processes of saccade preparation and visuospatial attention has typically been studied by using either sensory cues or predetermined rules that instruct subjects where to allocate these limited resources. In the real world, explicit instructions are not always available and presumably expectations shaped by previous experience play an important role in the allocation of these processes. Here we examined whether manipulating two experiential factors that clearly influence saccade preparation—the probability and timing of saccadic responses—also influences the allocation of visuospatial attention. Occasionally, a visual probe was presented whose spatial location and time of presentation varied relative to those of the saccade target. The proportion of erroneous saccades directed toward this probe indexed saccade preparation, and the proportion of correct discriminations of probe orientation indexed visuospatial attention. Overall, preparation and attention were significantly correlated to each other across these manipulations of saccade probability and timing. Saccade probability influenced both preparation and attention processes, whereas saccade timing influenced only preparation processes. Unexpectedly, discrimination ability was not improved in those trials in which the probe triggered an erroneous saccade despite particularly heightened levels of saccade preparation. To account for our results, we propose a conceptual dual-purpose threshold model based on neurophysiological considerations that link the processes of saccade preparation and visuospatial attention. The threshold acts both as the minimum activity level required for eliciting saccades and a maximum level for which neural activity can provide attentional benefits.

Lateralized Human Cortical Activity for Shifting Visuospatial Attention and Initiating Saccades

1998 ◽  
Vol 80 (6) ◽  
pp. 2900-2910 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernd Wauschkuhn ◽  
Rolf Verleger ◽  
Edmund Wascher ◽  
Wolfgang Klostermann ◽  
Marcel Burk ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Visual Attention ◽  
Short Interval ◽  
Cortical Activity ◽  
Stimulus Onset ◽  
Visuospatial Attention ◽  
Saccade Target ◽  
Relevant Stimulus ◽  
Stimulus Component ◽  
Saccade Direction ◽  
Saccade Preparation

Wauschkuhn, Bernd, Rolf Verleger, Edmund Wascher, Wolfgang Klostermann, Marcel Burk, Wolfgang Heide, and Detlef Kömpf. Lateralized human cortical activity for shifting visuospatial attention and initiating saccades. J. Neurophysiol. 80: 2900–2910, 1998. The relation between shifts of visual attention and saccade preparation was investigated by studying their electrophysiological correlates in human scalp-recorded electroencephalogram (EEG). Participants had to make saccades either to a saliently colored or to a gray circle, simultaneously presented in opposite visual hemifields, under different task instructions. EEG was measured within the short interval between stimulus onset and saccade, focusing on lateralized activity, contralateral either to the side of the relevant stimulus or to the direction of the saccade. Three components of lateralization were found: 1) activity contralateral to the relevant stimulus irrespective of saccade direction, peaking 250 ms after stimulus onset, largest above lateral parietal sites, 2) activity contralateral to the relevant stimulus if the stimulus was also the target of the saccade, largest 330–480 ms after stimulus onset, widespread over the scalp but with a focus again above lateral parietal sites, and 3) activity contralateral to saccade direction, beginning about 100 ms before the saccade, largest above mesial parietal sites, with some task-dependent fronto–central contribution. Because of their sensitivity to task variables, component 1 is interpreted as the shifting of attention to the relevant stimulus, component 2 is interpreted as reflecting the enhancement of the attentional shift if the relevant stimulus is also the saccade target, and component 3 is interpreted as the triggering signal for saccade execution. Thus human neurophysiological data provided evidence both for independent and interdependent processes of saccade preparation and shifts of visual attention.

Dissociating oculomotor contributions to spatial and feature-based selection

2013 ◽  
Vol 110 (7) ◽  
pp. 1525-1534 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donatas Jonikaitis ◽  
Jan Theeuwes
Keyword(s):  
Visual Perception ◽  
Target Location ◽  
Target Selection ◽  
Visual Selection ◽  
Saccade Target ◽  
Perceptual Discrimination ◽  
Spatial Selection ◽  
Feature Based ◽  
Selection Mechanisms ◽  
Saccade Preparation

Saccades not only deliver the high-resolution retinal image requisite for visual perception, but processing stages associated with saccade target selection affect visual perception even before the eye movement starts. These presaccadic effects are thought to arise from two visual selection mechanisms: spatial selection that enhances processing of the saccade target location and feature-based selection that enhances processing of the saccade target features. By measuring oculomotor performance and perceptual discrimination, we determined which selection mechanisms are associated with saccade preparation. We observed both feature-based and space-based selection during saccade preparation but found that feature-based selection was neither related to saccade initiation nor was it affected by simultaneously observed redistribution of spatial selection. We conclude that oculomotor selection biases visual selection only in a spatial, feature-unspecific manner.

TMS Pulses on the Frontal Eye Fields Break Coupling Between Visuospatial Attention and Eye Movements

2007 ◽  
Vol 98 (5) ◽  
pp. 2765-2778 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.F.W. Neggers ◽  
W. Huijbers ◽  
C. M. Vrijlandt ◽  
B.N.S. Vlaskamp ◽  
D.J.L.G. Schutter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Eye Movements ◽  
Eye Movement ◽  
Visual Processing ◽  
Discrimination Performance ◽  
Visuospatial Attention ◽  
Movement Direction ◽  
Frontal Eye Fields ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
And Shifts ◽  
Saccade Preparation

While preparing a saccadic eye movement, visual processing of the saccade goal is prioritized. Here, we provide evidence that the frontal eye fields (FEFs) are responsible for this coupling between eye movements and shifts of visuospatial attention. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)–guided transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was applied to the FEFs 30 ms before a discrimination target was presented at or next to the target of a saccade in preparation. Results showed that the well-known enhancement of discrimination performance on locations to which eye movements are being prepared was diminished by TMS contralateral to eye movement direction. Based on the present and other reports, we propose that saccade preparatory processes in the FEF affect selective visual processing within the visual cortex through feedback projections, in that way coupling saccade preparation and visuospatial attention.

scholarly journals Neural basis of location-specific pupil luminance modulation

2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (41) ◽  
pp. 10446-10451 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chin-An Wang ◽  
Douglas P. Munoz
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Attention ◽  
Visual Processing ◽  
Pupil Size ◽  
Spatial Location ◽  
Luminance Level ◽  
Neural Pathways ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Intermediate Layers ◽  
Saccade Preparation

Spatial attention enables us to focus visual processing toward specific locations or stimuli before the next fixation. Recent evidence has suggested that local luminance at the spatial locus of attention or saccade preparation influences pupil size independent of global luminance levels. However, it remains to be determined which neural pathways produce this location-specific modulation of pupil size. The intermediate layers of the midbrain superior colliculus (SC) form part of the network of brain areas involved in spatial attention and modulation of pupil size. Here, we demonstrated that pupil size was altered according to local luminance level at the spatial location corresponding to a microstimulated location in the intermediate SC (SCi) map of monkeys. Moreover, local SCi inactivation through injection of lidocaine reversed this local luminance modulation. Our findings reveal a causal role of the SCi in preparing pupil size for local luminance conditions at the next saccadic goal.

Oculomotor capture by abrupt onsets reveals concurrent programming of voluntary and involuntary saccades

1999 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 689-690 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur F. Kramer ◽  
David E. Irwin ◽  
Jan Theeuwes ◽  
Sowon Hahn
Keyword(s):  
Concurrent Programming ◽  
Abrupt Onset ◽  
Sudden Onset ◽  
Saccade Target ◽  
Oculomotor Capture ◽  
Voluntary Saccade ◽  
Winner Take All ◽  
Saccade Preparation ◽  
Salience Map ◽  
Take All

In several recent experiments we have found that the eyes are often captured by the appearance of a sudden onset in a display, even though subjects intend to move their eyes elsewhere. Very brief fixations are made on the abrupt onset before the eyes complete their intended movement to the previously defined target. These results indicate concurrent programming of a voluntary saccade to the defined saccade target and an involuntary saccade to the sudden onset. This is inconsistent with the idea that a single salience map determines the location of a saccade in a winner-take-all fashion. Other results indicate that subjects attend to more than one location in a display during saccade preparation, contrary to the claim that covert attentional scanning plays no role in saccade generation.

scholarly journals Supplementary Eye Field Encodes Option and Action Value for Saccades With Variable Reward

2010 ◽  
Vol 104 (5) ◽  
pp. 2634-2653 ◽  
Author(s):  
Na-Young So ◽  
Veit Stuphorn
Keyword(s):  
Activity Level ◽  
Saccade Target ◽  
Option Value ◽  
Supplementary Eye Field ◽  
Saccade Onset ◽  
Level Of Activity ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
Eye Field ◽  
Saccade Direction ◽  
Action Value

We recorded neuronal activity in the supplementary eye field (SEF) while monkeys made saccades to targets that yielded rewards of variable amount and uncertainty of delivery. Some SEF cells (29%) represented the anticipated value of the saccade target. These neurons encoded the value of the reward option but did not reflect the action necessary to obtain the reward. A plurality of cells (45%) represented both saccade direction and value. These neurons reflect action value, i.e., the value that is expected to follow from a specific saccade. Other cells (13%) represented only saccade direction. The SEF neurons matched the monkey's risk-seeking behavior by responding more strongly to the uncertain reward options than would be expected based on their response to the sure options and the cued outcome probability. Thus SEF neurons represented subjective, not expected, value. Across the SEF population, option-value signals developed early, ∼120 ms prior to saccade execution. Action-value and saccade direction signals developed ∼60 ms later. These results suggest that the SEF is involved in transforming option-value signals into action-value signals. However, in contrast to other oculomotor neurons, SEF neurons did not reach a constant level of activity before saccade onset. Instead the activity level of many (52%) SEF neurons still reflected value at the time just before saccade initiation. This suggests that SEF neurons guide the selection of a saccade based on value information but do not participate in the initiation of that saccade.

Saccadic reaction time in the monkey: advanced preparation of oculomotor programs is primarily responsible for express saccade occurrence

1996 ◽  
Vol 76 (6) ◽  
pp. 3666-3681 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Pare ◽  
D. P. Munoz
Keyword(s):  
Target Location ◽  
Spatial Location ◽  
Saccade Latency ◽  
Visual Fixation ◽  
Gap Effect ◽  
Saccade Target ◽  
Fixation Target ◽  
Express Saccades ◽  
Express Saccade ◽  
Saccade Direction

1. The introduction of a period of darkness between the disappearance of an initial fixation target and the appearance of a peripheral saccade target produces a general reduction in saccadic reaction time (SRT)-known as the gap effect- and often very short latency express saccades. To account for these phenomena, premotor processes may be facilitated by release of visual fixation and advanced preparation of saccadic programs. The experiments described in this paper were designed to test the relevance of the ocular fixation disengagement and oculomotor preparation hypotheses by identifying the influence of different factors on SRTs and the occurrence of express saccades in the monkey. 2. The SRTs of two monkeys were measured in two behavioral paradigms. A peripheral saccade target appeared at the time of disappearance of a central fixation target in the no-gap task, whereas a 200-ms period of no stimuli was interposed between the fixation target disappearance and the saccade target appearance in the gap task. The distribution of SRTs in these tasks was generally bimodal; the first and second mode was composed of express and regular saccades, respectively. We measured the mean SRT, mean regular saccade latency, mean express saccade latency, and percentage of express saccades in both tasks. We also estimated the gap effect, i.e., the difference between the SRTs in no-gap trial and the SRTs in gap trials. 3. Once the animals were trained to make saccades to a single target location and produce express saccades, SRTs in both no-gap and gap trials displayed a broad tuning with respect to the spatial location of the trained target when the target location was varied randomly in a block of trials. Express saccades were made only to a restricted region of the visual field surrounding the trained target location. A gap effect was present for nearly all target locations tested, irrespective of express saccade occurrence. Finally, the probability of generating an express saccade at the trained target location decreased with the introduction of uncertainty about target location. 4. The occurrence of express saccades increased with the duration of the visual and nonvisual (gap) fixation that the animal was required to maintain before the onset of a saccade target. The gap duration was effective in reducing the mean SRT for gaps < or = 300 ms, and it was more influential than comparable variation in the visual fixation duration. 5. The occurrence of express saccades made to targets of identical eccentricity increased when the initial eye fixation position was shifted eccentric in a direction opposite to the saccade direction. Concomitantly, mean SRT decreased by approximately 2 ms for each 1-deg change in initial eye fixation position. 6. The occurrence of express saccades depended upon contextual factors, i.e., on both the behavioral task (no-gap or gap) and the latency of the saccade that the monkey executed to the same target in the preceding trial. The highest percentage of express saccades was observed after an express saccade in a no-gap trial, whereas the lowest percentage was obtained after a regular saccade in a gap trial. 7. These findings indicate that training-dependent express saccades are restricted to a specific spatial location dictated by the training target, and their incidence is facilitated by high predictability of target presentation, long-duration foreperiod, absence of visual fixation, eccentric initial eye position opposite to the saccade direction, and express saccade occurrence in the previous trial. The release of fixation afforded by the gap accounts for the general gap effect, but has only a modulatory influence on express saccade generation. We conclude that advanced motor preparation of saccadic programs generally reduces SRT and is primarily responsible for the occurrence of express saccades, which therefore may be caused mainly by neuronal changes restricted to a specific locus-coding for the trained movemen

scholarly journals The mechanism of polarization leveling in the development of multi-level territorial socio-economic systems

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rinat Gataullin
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Maximum Level ◽  
Spatial Location ◽  
Economic Systems ◽  
Effective Measure ◽  
New Development ◽  
Social And Economic Development ◽  
Socio Economic Development ◽  
Multi Level

The article reveals the structure and functions of the polarization leveling mechanism elements in the development of multi-level territorial socio-economic systems. As the main directions of leveling the polarization of territories, the formation of zones of advanced development, the formation of growth points in them, the prevention of depressive areas, the formation of areas of new development, which should be provided by taking advantage of the spatial location, the existing natural potential, the generation of innovations and the implementation of institutional advantages. Also, the factors of leveling and polarization of socio-economic development of regions are systematized. Polarization in the socio-economic development of territorial entities is considered as a result of the action of the market element. Leveling, on the contrary, is recognized as a field for state and municipal authorities. The criterion of optimality of differences in socio-economic development is considered by analogy with the methods of justice assessment. Comparisons of equity are considered horizontally and vertically. Horizontally, equal differences in indicators of social and economic development are recognized as fair. Vertically – the presence of differences in the same indicators, but equally. As the main criterion of horizontal optimality, the author suggests a coincidence in the rating of the quality of life of the population and the level of labor productivity in certain territorial entities. As a criterion of optimality of differences in the level of socio-economic development of territories, which is provided by the redistribution of resources, it is proposed to achieve the maximum level of growth in production in the future. Project management of territorial systems is considered as an effective measure to level polarization in the development of multi-level territorial socio-economic systems. The structure of the system of relevant institutions is shown.

The Relationship between Eye Movements and Spatial Attention

1986 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 475-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Shepherd ◽  
John M. Findlay ◽  
Robert J. Hockey
Keyword(s):  
Eye Movements ◽  
Spatial Attention ◽  
Target Position ◽  
Saccadic Eye Movements ◽  
Saccade Target ◽  
Peripheral Stimulus ◽  
Peripheral Stimulation ◽  
Voluntary Eye Movements ◽  
Automatic Capture ◽  
Saccade Preparation

Most previous studies of the attentional consequences of making saccadic eye movements have used peripheral stimuli to elicit eye movements. It is argued that in the light of evidence showing automatic “capture” of attention by peripheral stimuli, these experiments do not distinguish between attentional effects due to peripheral stimuli and those due to eye movements. In the present study, spatial attention was manipulated by varying the probability that peripheral probe stimuli would appear in different positions, while saccades were directed by a central arrow, enabling the effects of attention and eye movements to be separated. The results showed that the time to react to a peripheral stimulus could be shortened both by advance knowledge of its likely position and, separately, by preparing to make a saccade to that position. When the saccade was directed away from the most likely position of the probe, the targets for attention and eye movements were on opposite sides of the display. In this condition, the effects of preparing to make a saccade proved to be stronger than the effects of attentional allocation until well after the saccade had finished, suggesting that making a saccade necessarily involves the allocation of attention to the target position. The effects of probe stimuli on saccade latencies were also examined: probe stimuli that appeared before the saccade shortened saccade latencies if they appeared at the saccade target, and lengthened saccade latencies if they appeared on the opposite side of fixation. These facilitatory and inhibitory effects were shown to occur at different stages of saccade preparation and suggest that attention plays an important role in the generation of voluntary eye movements. The results of this study indicate that while it is possible to make attention movements without making corresponding eye movements, it is not possible to make an eye movement (in the absence of peripheral stimulation) without making a corresponding shift in the focus of attention.

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