Spontaneous Necker-cube reversals may not be that spontaneous

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience

Neuroscience

Ludger Tebartz van Elst¹  Jürgen Kornmeier²  Mareike Wilson²  Lukas Hecker³  Ad Aertsen⁴  Ellen Joos⁵ 

[1] Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Center – University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Center – University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health, Freiburg, Germany;Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Center – University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health, Freiburg, Germany;Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical Center – University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;Bernstein Center Freiburg, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany;INSERM U1114, Cognitive Neuropsychology and Pathophysiology of Schizophrenia, Strasbourg, France;

关键词: ambiguous figures;    perceptual reversals;    bistable perception;    EEG;    Necker cube;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fnhum.2023.1179081

 received in 2023-03-03, accepted in 2023-04-28,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

IntroductionDuring observation of the ambiguous Necker cube, our perception suddenly reverses between two about equally possible 3D interpretations. During passive observation, perceptual reversals seem to be sudden and spontaneous. A number of theoretical approaches postulate destabilization of neural representations as a pre-condition for reversals of ambiguous figures. In the current study, we focused on possible Electroencephalogram (EEG) correlates of perceptual destabilization, that may allow prediction of an upcoming perceptual reversal.MethodsWe presented ambiguous Necker cube stimuli in an onset-paradigm and investigated the neural processes underlying endogenous reversals as compared to perceptual stability across two consecutive stimulus presentations. In a separate experimental condition, disambiguated cube variants were alternated randomly, to exogenously induce perceptual reversals. We compared the EEG immediately before and during endogenous Necker cube reversals with corresponding time windows during exogenously induced perceptual reversals of disambiguated cube variants.ResultsFor the ambiguous Necker cube stimuli, we found the earliest differences in the EEG between reversal trials and stability trials already 1 s before a reversal occurred, at bilateral parietal electrodes. The traces remained similar until approximately 1100 ms before a perceived reversal, became maximally different at around 890 ms (p = 7.59 × 10–6, Cohen’s d = 1.35) and remained different until shortly before offset of the stimulus preceding the reversal. No such patterns were found in the case of disambiguated cube variants.DiscussionThe identified EEG effects may reflect destabilized states of neural representations, related to destabilized perceptual states preceding a perceptual reversal. They further indicate that spontaneous Necker cube reversals are most probably not as spontaneous as generally thought. Rather, the destabilization may occur over a longer time scale, at least 1 s before a reversal event, despite the reversal event as such being perceived as spontaneous by the viewer.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
Copyright © 2023 Wilson, Hecker, Joos, Aertsen, Tebartz van Elst and Kornmeier.