Interference in Visual Perception by Verbal and Spatial Cognitive Activity

In two experiments we tested the hypothesis that cognitive processing based on spatial imagery produces more deterioration of visual perception than cognitive processing based on verbal codes. So, we studied the effect on visual perception of two cognitive tasks, one of spatial imagery and the other...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Spanish journal of psychology 2011-11, Vol.14 (2), p.556-568
Main Authors: Pérez-Moreno, Elisa, Conchillo, Ángela, Recarte, Miguel Ángel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Attention
Biological and medical sciences
Cognition
Cognition. Intelligence
Cognitive psychology
Executive Function
Experimental psychology
Female
Fixation, Ocular
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Humans
Intellectual and cognitive abilities
Male
Maze Learning
Mental load
Orientation
Pattern Recognition, Visual
Perception
Perceptual interference
Problem Solving
Psychology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Reaction Time
Saccades
Semantics
Space Perception
Verbal Behavior
Vision
Visual perception
Young Adult
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Summary:In two experiments we tested the hypothesis that cognitive processing based on spatial imagery produces more deterioration of visual perception than cognitive processing based on verbal codes. So, we studied the effect on visual perception of two cognitive tasks, one of spatial imagery and the other a verbal task. In the first one, with 30 participants, we analyzed the mental load and ocular behaviors in both cognitive tasks. In the second experiment, with 29 participants, we studied the effect of both tasks on a visual search task, using a dual-task experimental paradigm. The verbal task presented higher mental load than the imagery task when both tasks were carried out with visual search task, and there was more deterioration in stimulus detection with the verbal task. We can conclude that: (1) cognitive tasks produce important deterioration in the capacities of visual search and identification of stimuli; (2) this deterioration has two components: (a) an inefficient search, associated with alterations of the gaze patterns while performing cognitive tasks, and (b) a general interference, nonspecific to spatial codes, in the process of identification of looked-at stimuli; (3) this cognitive interference is related to the mental load or effort required by the cognitive task. Mediante dos experimentos hemos puesto a prueba la hipótesis de que el procesamiento cognitivo basado en imaginería espacial produce más deterioro en la percepción visual que el procesamiento basado en códigos verbales. Hemos estudiado el efecto de dos tareas cognitivas, una de imaginería espacial y otra verbal, sobre la percepción visual. En el primer experimento, con 30 participantes, analizamos la carga mental y el comportamiento ocular en ambas tareas cognitivas. En el segundo experimento, con 29 participantes, estudiamos el efecto de ambas tareas sobre una tarea de búsqueda visual, usando el paradigma experimental de doble tarea. La tarea verbal presentó mayor carga mental que la de imaginería espacial cuando ambas tareas se realizaron junto con la tarea de búsqueda visual y hubo un mayor deterioro en la detección de estímulos con la tarea verbal. Concluimos que (1) las tareas cognitivas producen un importante deterioro en capacidades de búsqueda visual e identificación de estímulos visuales; (2) este deterioro tiene dos componentes: (a) búsqueda ineficiente, asociada con alteraciones del patrón de mirada mientras se desarrollan tareas cognitivas, y (b) interferencia general, no e
ISSN:1138-7416
1988-2904
DOI:10.5209/rev_SJOP.2011.v14.n2.4