Familiarity and pop-out in visual search

Wang, Qinqin; Cavanagh, Patrick; Green, Marc · 1994 · OpenAlex-citations

DOI: 10.3758/bf03206946

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Summary

This study investigates whether familiarity with visual stimuli can facilitate "pop-out" in visual search, a phenomenon typically attributed to low-level primitive features like color or orientation. The authors aimed to determine if familiarity alone, independent of physical feature differences, could support parallel processing. Previous research suggested that categorical knowledge or practice could speed search, but often confounded low-level features or used heterogeneous distractors. This experiment controlled for low-level features by using mirror-image stimuli (e.g., N vs. H, 2 vs. S) and homogeneous distractor fields to isolate the effect of familiarity. The experimental design involved six subjects performing a visual search task across four conditions. In Condition 1, both targets and distractors were unfamiliar shapes (e.g., rotated Ns). In Condition 2, both were familiar shapes (e.g., upright Ns). In Condition 3, the target was familiar while distractors were unfamiliar. In Condition 4, the target was unfamiliar while distractors were familiar. Stimuli were presented in displays with set sizes ranging from 1 to 6 items. Reaction times for correct responses were measured to calculate search slopes (msec/item), with a criterion of 8 msec/item distinguishing parallel from serial search. The results demonstrated a strong asymmetry based on familiarity. When both target and distractors were unfamiliar (Condition 1), search was slowest, with a slope of 82 msec/item. When both were familiar (Condition 2), search improved but remained serial, with a slope of 31 msec/item. When the target was familiar and distractors unfamiliar (Condition 3), the slope was 46–51 msec/item, indicating serial processing. Crucially, in Condition 4, where the target was unfamiliar and distractors were familiar, the search slope dropped to 1.5 msec/item, effectively zero. This indicates that the unfamiliar target "popped out" via parallel processing against a familiar background. The findings conclude that familiarity can support parallel visual search, but only when the familiarity is confined to the distractors, not the target. The authors propose that familiar items are processed as "standards" requiring less attentional resources, while unfamiliar items act as "deviations" that attract attention. This suggests that familiarity functions similarly to a primitive feature in preattentive processing. The study implies that visual search efficiency is mediated not just by physical stimulus properties but also by the observer's experience with the background context, challenging the view that pop-out is exclusively driven by low-level physical features.

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Topics

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• visual search
• inattentional change blindness