Abstract

In a paradigma for which 2 distinct patterns are perceived for the same stimulus, perceptual hysteresis (persistence of a percept despite parameter change to values favoring the alternative pattern) and temporal stability (persistence despite intrinsic propensities toward spontaneous change) are interdependent. Greater persistence during parameter change reduces temporal stability, slowing the rate of parameter change reduces hysteresis by increasing opportunity for spontaneous change, and increasing temporal stability (by enlarging the stimulus) encreases hysteresis. Hysteresis results in the perception of parametrically disfavored patterns; a parameter can influence a percent without specifying it. The visual system thus exhibits time-dependent behavior analogous todynamical behavior observed in other systems, both physical and biological, for which there is competition among alternative patterns that vary in relative stability. Verf.-Referat