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Neuro-cognitive mechanisms of conscious and unconscious visual perception: From a plethora of phenomena to general principles

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Kiefer M., Ansorge U., Haynes J.-D., Hamker F., Mattler U., Verleger R., Niedeggen M.

Advances in Cognitive Psychology

2011

vol. 7

55-67

Psychological and neuroscience approaches have promoted much progress in elucidating the cognitive and neural mechanisms that underlie phenomenal visual awareness during the last decades. In this article, we provide an overview of the latest research investigating important phenomena in conscious and unconscious vision. We identify general principles to characterize conscious and unconscious visual perception, which may serve as important building blocks for a unified model to explain the plethora of findings. We argue that in particular the integration of principles from both conscious and unconscious vision is advantageous and provides critical constraints for developing adequate theoretical models. Based on the principles identified in our review, we outline essential components of a unified model of conscious and unconscious visual perception. We propose thatawarenessrefers to consolidated visual representations, which are accessible to the entire brain and therefore globally available. However,visual awarenessnot only depends on consolidation within the visual system, but is additionally the result of a post-sensory gating process, which is mediated by higher-level cognitive control mechanisms. We further propose that amplification of visual representations by attentional sensitization is not exclusive to the domain of conscious perception, but also applies to visual stimuli, which remain unconscious. Conscious and unconscious processing modes are highly interdependent with influences in both directions. We therefore argue that exactly this interdependence renders a unified model of conscious and unconscious visual perception valuable. Computational modeling jointly with focused experimental research could lead to a better understanding of the plethora of empirical phenomena in consciousness research.

Specifying attentional top-down influences on subsequent unconscious semantic processing

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Martens U., Kiefer M.

Advances in Cognitive Psychology

2009

vol. 5

56-68

Classical theories assume that unconscious automatic processes are autonomous and independent of higher-level cognitive influences. In contrast, we propose that automatic processing depends on a specific configuration of the cognitive system by top-down control. In 2 experiments, we tested the influence of available attentional resources and previously activated task sets on masked semantic priming in a lexical decision task. In Experiment 1, before masked prime presentation, participants were engaged in an easy or hard primary task that differentially afforded attentional resources. Semantic priming was attenuated when the primary task was hard, that is, when only little attentional resources were available. In Experiment 2, a semantic or perceptual induction task differentially modulated subsequent masked semantic priming. Hence, unconscious automatic processing depends on the availability of attentional resources and is susceptible to top-down control.

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2 Advances in Cognitive Psychology

2 Kiefer M.

1 Ansorge U.

1 Hamker F.

1 Haynes J.-D.

1 Martens U.

1 Mattler U.

1 Niedeggen M.

1 Verleger R.

1 2011

1 2009

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Neuro-cognitive mechanisms of conscious and unconscious visual perception: From a plethora of phenomena to general principles

Specifying attentional top-down influences on subsequent unconscious semantic processing