Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Importance Of Perceptual Representation In The Visual Control Of Action, Jack M. Loomis, Andrew C. Beall, Jonathan W. Kelly, Kristen L. Macuga

Jonathan W. Kelly

In recent years, many experiments have demonstrated that optic flow is sufficient for visually controlled action, with the suggestion that perceptual representations of 3-D space are superfluous. In contrast, recent research in our lab indicates that some visually controlled actions, including some thought to be based on optic flow, are indeed mediated by perceptual representations. For example, we have demonstrated that people are able to perform complex spatial behaviors, like walking, driving, and object interception, in virtual environments which are rendered visible solely by cyclopean stimulation (random-dot cinematograms). In such situations, the absence of any retinal optic flow that is …