Object-location binding in realistic scenes in visual working memory.

Abstract

Erroneous object-location binding – when the object information is stored correctly, but not the spatial location of these objects – is typical for everyday tasks that require visual working memory. Many studies have been focused on binding errors; however, it is not clear how object-location binding is functioning in realistic scenes with its specific laws and rules. In the current study participants were asked to remember the positions of objects in realistic scenes. Half of the trials contained the target object places within the scene according to the rules, whereas in the other half the target object was placed despite the rules of the scene. Participants were found to remember better the objects located in accordance to the rules of the scene. We assume that the structure of the scene enhances the object-location binding by means of directed attention.