The Effect of Orientation Learning on Contrast Sensitivity
Nestor Matthews, Zili Liu, and Ning Qian, Vision Research
2001, 41:463-471.
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Abstract
Regan & Beverley (1985) previously demonstrated that adapting to an
oriented visual stimulus improves sensitivity to subtle orientation
differences while impairing contrast sensitivity. Here, we
investigated whether practice-based improvements in orientation
sensitivity would, like adaptation, impair contrast sensitivity. To
the contrary, we found that contrast sensitivity actually improved
significantly after observers demonstrated practice-based increases in
orientation sensitivity. Therefore, while orientation sensitivity can
be enhanced either by orientation-discrimination training or by
adapting to visual stimuli, these two procedures have opposite effects
on contrast sensitivity. This difference suggests that adaptation and
perceptual learning on orientation discrimination cannot be
sufficiently explained by a shared underlying cause, such as a
reduction in neural activity.
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