Visual Reaction Time as a Function of Target Size and Retinal Eccentricity in the Peripheral Visual Field

Using 2 well practiced Ss, visual reaction times were measured to targets of 4 sizes between 18 and 116 min of arc at a fixed luminance level of 93 log cd/m2. The targets were presented to 11 retinal loci: fovea and 10°, 20°, 30°, 40°, and 50° on both the nasal and the temporal side of the fovea along the horizontal meridian of the right eye. Reaction time decreased as a function of increasing target size and increased as a function of increasing retinal eccentricity. It was also found that reaction time to stimulation on the nasal side of the retina was faster than to the temporal side. It was suggested that increasing spatial summation might play a critical role in determining reaction time

Eccentricity (behavior) · Luminance · Meridian (astronomy) · Optics · Peripheral · Physics · Retina · Retinal · Visual angle · Visual field · Internal Medicine · Mathematics · Medicine · Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies · Ocular and Laser Science Research · Ophthalmology · Psychology · Visual perception and processing mechanisms