Discontinuous presentation of ambiguous figures: How interstimulus-interval durations affect reversal dynamics and ERPs

  1. Jürgen Kornmeier1,2,
  2. Werner Ehm2,
  3. Heiko Bigalke1,
  4. Michael Bach1

Article first published online: 19 APR 2007

DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-8986.2007.00525.x

Issue

Psychophysiology

Psychophysiology

Volume 44, Issue 4, pages 552–560, July 2007

Additional Information

How to Cite

Kornmeier, J., Ehm, W., Bigalke, H. and Bach, M. (2007), Discontinuous presentation of ambiguous figures: How interstimulus-interval durations affect reversal dynamics and ERPs. Psychophysiology, 44: 552–560. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8986.2007.00525.x

Author Information

  1. 1

    Sektion Funktionelle Sehforschung, Universität-Augenklinik Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany

  2. 2

    Institut für Grenzgebiete der Psychologie, Freiburg, Germany

*Address reprint requests to: Jürgen Kornmeier, Sektion Funktionelle Sehforschung, Universität-Augenklinik Freiburg, Killianstraße 5, 79106 Freiburg, Germany. E-mail: juergen.kornmeier@uni-freiburg.de

  1. Support by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (BA 977-11) is gratefully acknowledged.

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 19 APR 2007
  2. Article first published online: 19 APR 2007
  3. (Received December 18, 2006; Accepted February 28, 2007)

SEARCH

SEARCH BY CITATION

ARTICLE TOOLS

View Full Article (HTML) Get PDF (431K)

Keywords:

  • Ambiguous figures;
  • Multistable perception;
  • Bistable perception;
  • Necker cube;
  • Event-related potentials (ERPs);
  • EEG

Abstract

If we observe an ambiguous figure, our percept is unstable and alternates between the possible interpretations. Periodically interrupting the presentation sizably modulates the spontaneous reversal rate. We here studied event-related potential (ERP) correlates of the neural processes underlying these strong modulations. An ambiguous Necker stimulus was presented discontinuously with four randomly varying interstimulus intervals (ISI; 14, 43, 130, 390 ms) while participants indicated perceptual reversals. EEG was selectively averaged with respect to the participants' percept and ISI. ERP traces varied markedly between ISIs. A simple model explained a major part of this variation and showed that the ISI-dependent ERP modulation occurs after disambiguation has already taken place. We suggest that perceptual stability (or reversal) depends on a system state, slowly changing from one reversal to the next. ISI can shift this state on a scale between stability and instability.

View Full Article (HTML) Get PDF (431K)