Subliminal Perception as a Sensory Psychologist Sees It

John H. Krantz, Hanover College

Sections

• Outline
• Background
• Measuring
• What is it?
• Confusion
• Visual System
• Evidence
• Conclusion
• References

Hanover College
Psychology Department

Using the Media

Evidence that the Visual Cortex is Necessary for Awareness

• If the cortex is removed, patient report blindness (Weiskrantz et al., 1974)

  

  • If secondary visual cortex is removed towards temporal lobe: agnosia (Luria, 1973)

  

  • Patients can see but not make sense of what they see
  • draw disjointed representations

  • If parietal cortex damaged on right, get hemispatial neglect (Luria, 1973)

  

  • Not respond to stimuli on left
  • Draw mostly right half of figure
  • Extinction experiments indicate awareness is suppressed but possible

  

• Next

John H. Krantz, Ph.D. Hanover College, krantzj@hanover.edu