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Neural substrates for visual perceptual grouping in humans

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 January 2002

SHIHUI HAN
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Peking University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
YAN SONG
Affiliation:
Beijing Lab of Cognitive Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Beijing, People's Republic of China
YULONG DING
Affiliation:
Beijing Lab of Cognitive Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Beijing, People's Republic of China
E. WILLIAM YUND
Affiliation:
Department of Neurology, University of California at Davis, VA Northern California System of Clinics, Martinez, CA, USA
DAVID L. WOODS
Affiliation:
Department of Neurology, University of California at Davis, VA Northern California System of Clinics, Martinez, CA, USA
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Abstract

Two experiments investigated the neural mechanisms of Gestalt grouping by recording high-density event-related brain potentials (ERPs) during discrimination tasks. In Experiment 1, stimulus arrays contained luminance-defined local elements that were either evenly spaced or grouped into columns or rows based on either proximity or similarity of shape. Proximity grouping was indexed by a short-latency positivity (110–120 ms) over the medial occipital cortex and a subsequent right occipitoparietal negativity. Grouping by similarity was reflected only in a long-latency occipitotemporal negativity. In Experiment 2, proximity grouping was examined when local elements were defined by motion cues, and was again associated with a medial occipital positivity. However, the subsequent long-latency negativity was now enhanced over the left posterior areas. The implications of these results to the neural substrates subserving different grouping processes are discussed.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2001 Society for Psychophysiological Research

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