Manipulating perception versus action in recalibration tasks

• Published in: Attention, perception & psychophysics Vol. 75; no. 6; pp. 1260 - 1274
• Main Authors: Ziemer, Christine J., Branson, Mia J., Chihak, Benjamin J., Kearney, Joseph K., Cremer, James F., Plumert, Jodie M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston Springer US 01.08.2013; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adaptation, Physiological - physiology; Adult; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Biological and medical sciences; Biomechanics; Cognitive Psychology; Communication disorders; Distance Perception - physiology; Environment; Experiments; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Human; Humans; Imagination - physiology; Learning. Memory; Male; Memory; Motion; Perception; Pretests Posttests; Psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Psychomotor Performance - physiology; Sensory Deprivation - physiology; Space Perception - physiology; User-Computer Interface; Vision; Walking; Walking - physiology; Young Adult; Spatial cognition; Perception and action; Navigation and spatial memory; Human; Navigation; Spatial orientation; Cognition; Space perception; Experimental study; Vision; Perception; Comparative study; Spatial memory
• ISSN: 1943-3921; 1943-393X
• DOI: 10.3758/s13414-013-0473-6

We conducted six experiments to examine how manipulating perception versus action affects perception–action recalibration in real and imagined blindfolded walking tasks. Participants first performed a distance estimation task (pretest) and then walked through an immersive virtual environment on a treadmill for 10 min. Participants then repeated the distance estimation task (posttest), the results of which were compared with their pretest performance. In Experiments 1 a, 2 a, and 3 a, participants walked at a normal speed during recalibration, but the rate of visual motion was either twice as fast or half as fast as the participants' walking speed. In Experiments 1 b, 2 b, and 3 b, the rate of visual motion was kept constant, but participants walked at either a faster or a slower speed. During pre- and posttest, we used either a blindfolded walking distance estimation task or an imagined walking distance estimation task. Additionally, participants performed the pretest and posttest distance estimation tasks in either the real environment or the virtual environment. With blindfolded walking as the distance estimation task for pre- and posttest, we found a recalibration effect when either the rate of visual motion or the walking speed was manipulated during the recalibration phase. With imagined walking as the distance estimation task, we found a recalibration effect when the rate of visual motion was manipulated, but not when the walking speed was manipulated in both the real environment and the virtual environment. Discussion focuses on how spatial-updating processes operate on perception and action and on representation and action.