How simple shapes guide human visual attention

What is it about?

We investigated which features of simple 2D shapes can guide visual attention during visual search. Since shapes contain different features (e.g., edges and corners, tops and bases, a global orientation). Therefore, it was previously unclear which features can guide visual attention and which can only be used for search. The results showed that the global outline and the global orientation of a shape guide visual attention and that their guidance depends on the current search goals. However, a specific pointing direction did not selectively guide attention, indicating a limitation of attentional guidance in humans.

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Photo by Shubham Dhage on Unsplash

Photo by Shubham Dhage on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Visual attention (i.e., the selective perception of some stimuli over others) is crucial for effective behavior since our environment contains a plethora of (visual) stimuli. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms of visual attention helps designing visual environments (e.g., user interfaces, dashboards, cockpits) to facilitate successful performance. For example, the results of this paper showed that searching for an equilateral triangle pointing upwards elicited attentional guidance by an equilateral triangle pointing downwards. This result means that a specific pointing direction of an equilateral triangle can be used for search but not for attentional guidance. Thus, it is better to use entirely different shapes for visual elements on screens or in cockpits if humans should be able to distinguish those elements easily. Using shapes with different pointing directions might hinder fast discrimination.

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