The Perceptual Specificity of Representations of Complex Scenes for Rotation, Translation, and Reflection

The issue of how complex visual scenes are represented has received relatively little attention. Perceptual specificity refers to the degree to which a physical change to a stimulus, upon re-presentation, alters performance in any type of memory test. I investigated the perceptual specificity of scene representations for various kinds of changes to naturalistic scenes using eye movements and a direct measure of memory (familiarity or recognition). In Experiment 1, both measures indicated that scene representations, like object representations, are perceptually specific for rotations in depth. In Experiment 2, I replicated this result using backgroundless outdoor objects and concluded that this similar result emerged because the representations of both objects and scenes have view dependent components, and because the primary objects in a scene are allotted more weight in the scene's representation. In Experiment 3, I horizontally translated scenes in order to determine if scene representations are frame-specific and to test the hypothesis that primary objects are allotted more representational weight. I found that scene representations are sensitive to frame translation in a manner that suggests that primary objects are weighted more heavily. In Experiment 4, I altered the left-right orientation of the picture to determine whether sensitivity for translation in Experiment 3 was due to deletion of scene parts or changes in the spatial relationships between scene features and the viewer. Mild specificity for orientation suggests that both play a role. I suggest that the perceptual specificity of these results in all 4 experiments supports the view that the representations of complex scenes have components which are view-, frame-, and orientation-dependent. Future research is suggested for examining further the nature of complex scene representations.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Neuroscience

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2015

Author dc:creator

• Olson, Mark William

Contributors dc:contributor

• Kramer, Arthur

• Biology, Neuroscience

Language dc:language

eng

Identifier

(MiAaPQ)AAI9834724

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/82533