If Opportunity Knocks: Understanding Contextual Factors' Influence on Cognitive Systems.

Central to the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) framework is the idea that RDoC constructs, which vary dimensionally by individual, are heavily influenced by contextual factors. Perhaps chief among these contextual factors is structural opportunity - the quality of resources available to a child as they grow. The aim of this study is to understand the impact of access to opportunity during childhood on three central RDoC cognitive systems constructs: language, visual perception, and attention. These constructs were measured using clinical data from psychological evaluations of youth ages 4-18 years (N = 16,523; Mage = 10.57, 62.3% male, 55.3% White). Structural opportunity was measured using the geocoded Child Opportunity Index 2.0 (COI), a composite score reflecting 29 weighted indicators of access to the types of neighborhood conditions that help children thrive. Findings indicate that, controlling for demographic and socioeconomic factors, greater access to opportunity is associated with significantly stronger cognitive skills across all three constructs. However, opportunity uniquely explains the largest proportion of the variance in language skills (8.4%), compared to 5.8% of the variance in visual processing skills and less than 2% of the variance in attention. Further, a moderating effect of age was found on the relation between COI and language skills, suggesting that the longer children remain exposed to lower levels of opportunity, the lower their language skills tend to be. Understanding how opportunity impacts cognitive development allows clinicians to offer better tailored recommendations to support children with cognitive systems deficits, and will support policy recommendations around access to opportunity.

Visual Attention and Emotion Analysis Based on Qualitative Assessment and Eyetracking Metrics-The Perception of a Video Game Trailer.

Video game trailers are very useful tools for attracting potential players. This research focuses on analyzing the emotions that arise while viewing video game trailers and the link between these emotions and storytelling and visual attention. The methodology consisted of a three-step task test with potential users: the first step was to identify the perception of indie games; the second step was to use the eyetracking device (gaze plot, heat map, and fixation points) and link them to fixation points (attention), viewing patterns, and non-visible areas; the third step was to interview users to understand impressions and questionnaires of emotions related to the trailer's storytelling and expectations. The results show an effective assessment of visual attention together with visualization patterns, non-visible areas that may affect game expectations, fixation points linked to very specific emotions, and perceived narratives based on the gaze plot. The innovation in the mixed methodological approach has made it possible to obtain relevant data regarding the link between the emotions perceived by the user and the areas of attention collected with the device. The proposed methodology enables developers to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the information being conveyed so that they can tailor the trailer to the expectations of potential players.

Development of the mirror-image sensitivity for different object categories-Evidence from the mirror costs of object images in children and adults.

Object recognition relies on a multitude of factors, including size, orientation, and so on. Mirrored orientation, particularly due to children's mirror confusion in reading, holds special significance among various object orientations. Brain imaging studies suggest that the visual ventral and dorsal streams exhibit distinct orientation sensitivity across diverse object categories. Yet, it remains unclear whether mirror orientation sensitivity also varies among these categories during development at the behavioral level. Here, we explored the mirror sensitivity of children and adults across five distinct categories, which encompass tools that activate both the visual ventral stream for function information and the dorsal stream for manipulation information, and animals and faces that mainly activate the ventral stream. Two types of symbols, letters and Chinese characters, were also included. Mirror sensitivity was assessed through mirror costs-that is, the additional reaction time or error rate in the mirrored versus the same orientation condition when judging the identity of object pairs. The mirror costs in reaction times and error rates consistently revealed that children exhibited null mirror costs for tools, and the mirror costs for tools in adults were minimal, if any, and were smaller than those for letters and characters. The mirror costs reflected in absolute reaction time and error rate were similar across adults and children, but when the overall difference in reaction times was considered, adults showed a larger mirror cost than children. Overall, our investigation unveils categorical distinctions and development in mirror sensitivity of object recognition across the ventral and dorsal streams.

A novel approach to the assessment of higher-order rule learning in male mice.

Historically, the development of valid and reliable methods for assessing higher-order cognitive abilities (e.g., rule learning and transfer) has been difficult in rodent models. To date, limited evidence supports the existence of higher cognitive abilities such as rule generation and complex decision-making in mice, rats, and rabbits. To this end, we sought to develop a task that would require mice to learn and transfer a rule. We trained mice to visually discriminate a series of images (image set, six total) of increasing complexity following three stages: (1) learn a visual target, (2) learn a rule (ignore any new images around the target), and finally (3) apply this rule in abstract form to a comparable but new image set. To evaluate learning for each stage, we measured (1) days (and performance by day) to discriminate the original target at criterion, (2) days (and performance by day) to get back to criterion when images in the set were altered by the introduction of distractors (rule learning), and (3) overall days (and performance by day) to criterion when experienced versus naïve cohorts of mice were tested on the same image set (rule transfer). Twenty-seven wild-type male C57 mice were tested using Bussey-Saksida touchscreen operant conditioning boxes (Lafayette Instruments). Two comparable black-white image sets were delivered sequentially (counterbalanced for order) to two identical cohorts of mice. Results showed that all mice were able to effectively learn their initial target image and could recall it >80 d later. We also found that mice were able to quickly learn and apply a "rule" : Ignore new distractors and continue to identify their visual target embedded in more complex images. The presence of rule learning was supported because performance criterion thresholds were regained much faster than initial learning when distractors were introduced. On the other hand, mice appeared unable to transfer this rule to a new set of stimuli. This is supported because visual discrimination curves for a new image set were no better than an initial (naïve) learning by a matched cohort of mice. Overall results have important implications for phenotyping research and particularly for the modeling of complex disorders in mice.

Enhancing Performance of Single-Channel SSVEP-Based Visual Acuity Assessment via Mode Decomposition.

This study aimed to improve the performance of single-channel steady-state visual evoked potential (SSVEP)-based visual acuity assessment by mode decomposition methods. Using the SSVEP dataset induced by the vertical sinusoidal gratings at six spatial frequency steps from 11 subjects, 3-40-Hz band-pass filtering and other four mode decomposition methods, i.e., empirical mode decomposition (EMD), ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD), improved complete ensemble empirical mode decomposition with adaptive noise (ICEEMDAN), and variational mode decomposition (VMD), were used to preprocess the single-channel SSVEP signals from Oz electrode. After comparing the SSVEP signal characteristics corresponding to each mode decomposition method, the visual acuity threshold estimation criterion was used to obtain the final visual acuity results. The agreement between subjective Freiburg Visual Acuity and Contrast Test (FrACT) and SSVEP visual acuity for band-pass filtering (-0.095 logMAR), EMD (-0.112 logMAR), EEMD (-0.098 logMAR), ICEEMDAN (-0.093 logMAR), and VMD (-0.090 logMAR) was all pretty good, with an acceptable difference between FrACT and SSVEP acuity for band-pass filtering (0.129 logMAR), EMD (0.083 logMAR), EEMD (0.120 logMAR), ICEEMDAN (0.103 logMAR), and VMD (0.108 logMAR), finding that the visual acuity obtained by these four mode decompositions had a lower limit of agreement and a lower or close difference compared to the traditional band-pass filtering method. This study proved that the mode decomposition methods can enhance the performance of single-channel SSVEP-based visual acuity assessment, and also recommended ICEEEMDAN as the mode decomposition method for single-channel electroencephalography (EEG) signal denoising in the SSVEP visual acuity assessment.

An Open-Field-Based Unimodal Object Recognition Test (OF-UORT) for Assessment of Chronic Stress Effects on Visual and Tactile Unimodal Cognition in Mice.

The open field (OF) test is a widely used behavioral assay in animal studies to assess locomotion, emotion, and cognition. In open-field-based object recognition tasks, the open arena is equipped with combinations of objects to allow the examination of various aspects of learning and memory. In this article, we provide a protocol for open-field-based unimodal memory tests that assess tactile or visual unimodal cognitive behavior in mice. These tests do not require mice to be restricted from eating or drinking and do not involve aversive stimuli, such as electric shock, high-decibel sound waves, bright light, or forced swimming. Inside the apparatus, mice can freely and spontaneously explore the objects and the environment. Sniffing of, or direct contact with, objects is considered a cognitive exploration of the objects, and the timing and number of such behaviors can be recorded. During the acquisition phase, two identical objects are provided. After an intertrial interval, the retrieval phase is initiated, during which one object is replaced with a new object that is different from the previous one. Decorative clear domes are used prevent direct tactile contact with the objects, whereas infrared illumination is used to block visual information from the objects. By alternating the access to visual or tactile features of the objects in the acquisition and retrieval phases, the experimenters can assess visual or tactile unimodal cognition. Here, we describe our own instrumentation and application for experiments, and demonstrate that the modified device is capable of testing visual or tactile unimodal cognition in mice. Although easy to perform, this task/test can accurately reflect unimodal cognitive performance in mice, which can provide solid and reproducible data support to related studies. © 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC. Basic Protocol 1: Validation of the open-field-based unimodal object recognition test Basic Protocol 2: Evaluation of chronic stress effects on unimodal cognition using the open-field-based unimodal cognitive test.

A Novel No-Reference Quality Assessment Metric for Stereoscopic Images with Consideration of Comprehensive 3D Quality Information.

Recently, stereoscopic image quality assessment has attracted a lot attention. However, compared with 2D image quality assessment, it is much more difficult to assess the quality of stereoscopic images due to the lack of understanding of 3D visual perception. This paper proposes a novel no-reference quality assessment metric for stereoscopic images using natural scene statistics with consideration of both the quality of the cyclopean image and 3D visual perceptual information (binocular fusion and binocular rivalry). In the proposed method, not only is the quality of the cyclopean image considered, but binocular rivalry and other 3D visual intrinsic properties are also exploited. Specifically, in order to improve the objective quality of the cyclopean image, features of the cyclopean images in both the spatial domain and transformed domain are extracted based on the natural scene statistics (NSS) model. Furthermore, to better comprehend intrinsic properties of the stereoscopic image, in our method, the binocular rivalry effect and other 3D visual properties are also considered in the process of feature extraction. Following adaptive feature pruning using principle component analysis, improved metric accuracy can be found in our proposed method. The experimental results show that the proposed metric can achieve a good and consistent alignment with subjective assessment of stereoscopic images in comparison with existing methods, with the highest SROCC (0.952) and PLCC (0.962) scores being acquired on the LIVE 3D database Phase I.

Imagined object files: Visual imagery produces partial repetition costs where perception does not.

The present study explored whether object (or event) files can be formed that integrate color imagery and perceptual location features. To assess this issue, a cue-target procedure was used whereby color imagery was cued to be generated at a particular location in space, which was then followed by a perceptual color discrimination task. Partial repetition costs (PRCs) were then measured by varying the overlap of the color and location features of the cue and target to evaluate whether an object/event file was formed. Robust PRCs were observed when imagery was generated at a location, supporting the idea that imagery and perception can be incorporated into a common event file. It was also revealed that the PRC effects for perceptual color cues were tenuous-they did not reach significance in the present study. Overall, the present study indicates that imagery can produce stronger binding effects than perception, offering important insights into the role that active engagement plays in the formation of object/event files.

The temporal cost of deploying attention limits accurate target identification in rapid serial visual presentation.

Lag-1 sparing is a common exception to the attentional blink, where a target presented directly after T1 can be identified and reported accurately. Prior work has proposed potential mechanisms for lag 1 sparing, including the boost and bounce model and the attentional gating model. Here, we apply a rapid serial visual presentation task to investigate the temporal limitations of lag 1 sparing by testing three distinct hypotheses. We found that endogenous engagement of attention to T2 requires between 50 and 100 ms. Critically, faster presentation rates yielded lower T2 performance, whereas decreased image duration did not impair T2 detection and report. These observations were reinforced by subsequent experiments controlling for short-term learning and capacity-dependent visual processing effects. Thus, lag-1 sparing was limited by the intrinsic dynamics of attentional boost engagement rather than by earlier perceptual bottlenecks such as insufficient exposure to images in the stimulus stream or visual processing capacity limitations. Taken together, these findings support the boost and bounce theory over earlier models that focus only on attentional gating or visual short-term memory storage, informing our understanding of how the human visual system deploys attention under challenging temporal constraints.

Eye-tracking visual patterns of sonographers with and without fetal motor assessment expertise.

OBJECTIVES: Fetal motor assessment (FMA) in addition to structural anomaly scan enhances prenatal detection of arthrogryposis multiplex congenita (AMC). In the Amsterdam UMC, sonographers are trained to perform FMA. We examined the effect of motor assessment training by comparing sonographers with (SMA) and without this training (S) on their qualitative motor assessment in fetuses with normal (FNM) and abnormal motility (FAM) and their visual processing by eye-tracking. METHODS: The study was performed from 2019 to 2020. Five SMA and five S observed five FNM and five FAM videos. Qualitative FMA consisted of six aspects of the general movement and the overall conclusion normal or abnormal. The visual processing aspects examined through eye-tracking were fixation duration, number of revisits per region of interest (ROI) and scanpaths of saccades between fixation points. RESULTS: Quality assessment by SMA revealed more correct aspects in FNM than in FAM but overall conclusions were equally correct (92-96 %). S scored aspects of FNM better than in FAM, but overall conclusion correct only in half of FNM and three quarters of FAM. Eye-tracking of SMA and S showed fixation duration and revisits with similar distributions per ROIs for FNM and FAM, but SMA perform more trunk revisits in FNM. Scanpaths had smaller circumference, less outliers and more consistency in SMA than S. CONCLUSION: This modest population of qualified sonographers showed that additional FMA training improved qualitative motor assessment. Eye-tracking revealed differences in visual processing and stimulates continuous education for professionals active in the detection of these rare diseases.

Binding time: Investigations on the integration of visual stimulus duration.

The perception of and reaction to objects creates bindings of (object) features and responses, also called event files. In this context, time is a so far understudied feature. We conducted four experiments to investigate whether the duration of visual stimuli is also integrated into such event files. Experiments 1, 2, and 4 used a simple colour classification task and in Experiment 3 the location of a stimulus had to be classified. In all Experiments, the presentation duration of the stimuli (coloured circles) was either short (20 ms) or long (300 ms). We expected partial repetition costs as an indicator of binding. That is, performance should be better when both colour (Experiment 3: location) and duration repeat or alternate relative to partial repetitions. Results showed no partial repetition costs in Experiments 1 and 3, indicating no integration of duration into visual event files. Experiments 2 and 4 revealed partial repetition costs. Performance was better when Colour and Duration repeated compared with a partial repetition. What distinguishes the latter two experiments from the former is that the coloured stimuli could change their presentation location. The results of all four experiments show a pattern that duration can be integrated into visual event files depending on two criteria: The experimental context holds the possibility of a location change of the target stimulus (Experiments 2 and 4) and the location itself is not response relevant (Experiment 3). The role of location changes for the integration of temporal stimulus features into visual event files is discussed.

The cost of attentional reorienting on conscious visual perception: an MEG study.

How do attentional networks influence conscious perception? To answer this question, we used magnetoencephalography in human participants and assessed the effects of spatially nonpredictive or predictive supra-threshold peripheral cues on the conscious perception of near-threshold Gabors. Three main results emerged. (i) As compared with invalid cues, both nonpredictive and predictive valid cues increased conscious detection. Yet, only predictive cues shifted the response criterion toward a more liberal decision (i.e. willingness to report the presence of a target under conditions of greater perceptual uncertainty) and affected target contrast leading to 50% detections. (ii) Conscious perception following valid predictive cues was associated to enhanced activity in frontoparietal networks. These responses were lateralized to the left hemisphere during attentional orienting and to the right hemisphere during target processing. The involvement of frontoparietal networks occurred earlier in valid than in invalid trials, a possible neural marker of the cost of re-orienting attention. (iii) When detected targets were preceded by invalid predictive cues, and thus reorienting to the target was required, neural responses occurred in left hemisphere temporo-occipital regions during attentional orienting, and in right hemisphere anterior insular and temporo-occipital regions during target processing. These results confirm and specify the role of frontoparietal networks in modulating conscious processing and detail how invalid orienting of spatial attention disrupts conscious processing.

Humans trade off search costs and accuracy in a combined visual search and perceptual task.

To interact with one's environment, relevant objects have to be selected as targets for saccadic eye movements. Previous studies have demonstrated that factors such as visual saliency and reward influence saccade target selection, and that humans can dynamically trade off these factors to maximize expected value during visual search. However, expected value in everyday situations not only depends on saliency and reward, but also on the required time to find objects, and the likelihood of a successful object-interaction after search. Here we studied whether search costs and the accuracy to discriminate an object feature can be traded off to maximize expected value. We designed a combined visual search and perceptual discrimination task, where participants chose whether to search for an easy- or difficult-to-discriminate target in search displays populated by distractors that shared features with either the easy or the difficult target. Participants received a monetary reward for correct discriminations and were given limited time to complete as many trials as they could. We found that participants considered their discrimination performance and the search costs when choosing targets and, by this, maximized expected value. However, the accumulated reward was constrained by noise in both the choice of which target to search for, and which elements to fixate during search. We conclude that humans take into account the prospective search time and the likelihood of successful a object-interaction, when deciding what to search for. However, search performance is constrained by noise in decisions about what to search for and how to search for it.

The influence of movement-related costs when searching to act and acting to search.

Real-world search behavior often involves limb movements, either during search or after search. Here we investigated whether movement-related costs influence search behavior in two kinds of search tasks. In our visual search tasks, participants made saccades to find a target object among distractors and then moved a cursor, controlled by the handle of a robotic manipulandum, to the target. In our manual search tasks, participants moved the cursor to perform the search, placing it onto objects to reveal their identity as either a target or a distractor. In all tasks, there were multiple targets. Across experiments, we manipulated either the effort or time costs associated with movement such that these costs varied across the search space. We varied effort by applying different resistive forces to the handle, and we varied time costs by altering the speed of the cursor. Our analysis of cursor and eye movements during manual and visual search, respectively, showed that effort influenced manual search but did not influence visual search. In contrast, time costs influenced both visual and manual search. Our results demonstrate that, in addition to perceptual and cognitive factors, movement-related costs can also influence search behavior.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Numerous studies have investigated the perceptual and cognitive factors that influence decision making about where to look, or move, in search tasks. However, little is known about how search is influenced by movement-related costs associated with acting on an object once it has been visually located or acting during manual search. In this article, we show that movement time costs can bias visual and manual search and that movement effort costs bias manual search.