Visual attention to surfaces in three-dimensional space.

He, Zhuochao; Nakayama, Kazuhisa · 1995 · OpenAlex-citations

DOI: 10.1073/pnas.92.24.11155

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Summary

This study investigates how visual attention is deployed in three-dimensional space, specifically addressing whether attention is guided by binocular disparity (common depth) or by the perception of coherent surfaces. Previous research suggested that observers could selectively focus attention on a specific depth plane defined by disparity, independent of surface structure. The authors challenge this "isodepth hypothesis," proposing instead a "surface hypothesis" wherein attention spreads automatically across perceptually grouped, locally coplanar surfaces, regardless of their orientation or depth range. To test these competing theories, the researchers conducted three experiments using stereoscopic displays viewed through a phase haploscope. In Experiment 1, observers performed visual search tasks to find an odd-colored target within a middle depth array. The study manipulated whether the elements in this array formed a flat, coplanar surface or were individually slanted, disrupting the surface perception while maintaining the average disparity. Results showed that search reaction times were significantly longer when the surface structure was disrupted, indicating that common depth alone is insufficient for efficient attentional deployment. Experiment 2 demonstrated that common depth is also not necessary; observers could efficiently search for targets on surfaces spanning extreme ranges of stereoscopic depths, provided the elements formed a coherent, slanted plane. Experiment 3 employed a cueing paradigm to determine if this surface-based attention is voluntary or obligatory. Observers were cued to attend to either an upper or lower row of elements. When the rows were part of separate, distinct planes, attention was successfully restricted to the cued row, and reaction times increased for uncued targets as disparity between planes increased. However, when the elements were arranged to form a single continuous receding surface, attention failed to remain confined to the cued row. Reaction times for uncued targets did not increase with disparity, demonstrating that attention spreads involuntarily across a perceived surface. The findings conclude that visual attention in three-dimensional space is not allocated to arbitrary spatial loci or depth values but is bound to perceived surfaces. Attention spreads preferentially and automatically across locally coplanar elements. This suggests that the deployment of attention is heavily dependent on perceptual representations of surface structure rather than abstract spatial coordinates. The results imply that attention operates on primitive perceptual units defined by properties like local coplanarity, supporting the view that attention is surface-bound rather than purely location-bound.

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• attention selective divided