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Visual attention affects temporal estimation in anticipatory motor actions

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Abstract

The production of accurate motor actions requires successful extraction of relevant information about the target of that action. By the same token, it also requires the successful exclusion of potentially distracting, irrelevant information. This study sought to determine the impact of transient visual distractions on performance in an anticipatory timing task, in particular the temporal and spatial relationship between distractor and target at which maximal distraction occurs. The results support the notion of a critical temporal and spatial window of distraction which provides insight into the visuomotor processes underlying distraction.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Paul E. Dux for the discussion of the results, Dr. David Lloyd for assistance with Fig. 1 and Alanna Cresp for assistance with data collection. We also appreciate the constructive criticism provided by Dr. Digby Elliott and two anonymous reviewers on an earlier version of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Perception & Motor Systems Laboratory, School of Human Movement Studies, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Welber Marinovic & Guy Wallis

  2. Perception Lab, School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, Blair Drive, St Lucia, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia

    Welber Marinovic

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  1. Welber Marinovic
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  2. Guy Wallis
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Correspondence to Welber Marinovic.

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Marinovic, W., Wallis, G. Visual attention affects temporal estimation in anticipatory motor actions. Exp Brain Res 212, 613–621 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-011-2772-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-011-2772-2

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