Where’s Wanda? The influence of visual imagery vividness on visual search speed measured by means of hidden object pictures

Tags:

Monzel, M., & Reuter, M. (2024). Where’s wanda? the influence of visual imagery vividness on visual search speed measured by means of hidden object pictures. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 86(1), 22–27. doi:10.3758/s13414-022-02645-6

Abstract

Previous research demonstrated effects of visual imagery on search speed in visual search paradigms. However, these effects were rather small, questioning their ecological validity. Thus, our present study aimed to generalize these effects to more naturalistic material (i.e., a paradigm that allows for top-down strategies in highly complex visual search displays that include overlapping stimuli while simultaneously avoiding possibly confounding search instructions). One hundred and four participants with aphantasia (= absence of voluntary mental imagery) and 104 gender and age-matched controls were asked to find hidden objects in several hidden object pictures with search times recorded. Results showed that people with aphantasia were significantly slower than controls, even when controlling for age and general processing speed. Thus, effects of visual imagery might be strong enough to influence the perception of our real-life surroundings, probably because of the involvement of visual imagery in several top-down strategies.

Authors

Merlin Monzel30
Martin Reuter16

What This Study Is About

Researchers wanted to know if having aphantasia—the inability to create mental images in the "mind's eye"—affects how quickly a person can find objects in a crowded scene. They tested whether people who can visualize things clearly have a "search advantage" in real-world settings compared to those who cannot.

How They Studied It

The study included 104 people with aphantasia and 104 people with typical imagery (the control group). Participants were shown "hidden object" pictures—complex, busy illustrations similar to Where’s Waldo?. For each round, they were shown a target object and then had to find it within the crowded scene as quickly as possible. The researchers measured their search times while also accounting for factors like age and general thinking speed.

What They Found

People with aphantasia were significantly slower at finding the hidden objects than the control group. On average, it took aphantasic participants about 8.9 seconds to find an object, while the control group took about 7.5 seconds—making the aphantasic group roughly 1.5 seconds (or about 20%) slower. The researchers found that the more vivid a person's mental imagery was, the faster they were at the search task.

What This Might Mean

This suggests that mental imagery isn't just an internal experience; it helps us navigate and understand the world around us. When people with typical imagery look for something, they may be using a mental "template" of the object to help their eyes spot it faster. While the delay for those with aphantasia is small, it shows that lacking a mind's eye can change how the brain processes visual information in everyday life.

One Interesting Detail

The researchers used "naturalistic" images—busy scenes with overlapping objects—to make the test feel more like real life than a standard laboratory test. Even in these complex, messy environments, the lack of mental imagery created a measurable difference in performance.

Where’s Wanda? The influence of visual imagery vividness on visual search speed measured by means of hidden object pictures

Abstract

Authors

Where’s Wanda? The influence of visual imagery vividness on visual search speed measured by means of hidden object pictures

Abstract

Authors

Where’s Wanda? The influence of visual imagery vividness on visual search speed measured by means of hidden object pictures

Abstract

Authors

Where’s Wanda? The influence of visual imagery vividness on visual search speed measured by means of hidden object pictures

Abstract

Authors

What This Study Is About

How They Studied It

What They Found

What This Might Mean

One Interesting Detail

What This Study Is About

How They Studied It

What They Found

What This Might Mean

One Interesting Detail

Joel Pearson

Merlin Monzel

Adam Zeman

Rebecca Keogh

Martin Reuter

Juha Silvanto

Paolo Bartolomeo

Carla Dance

Jianghao Liu

Fraser Milton