Learning regular cross-trial shifts of the target location in serial search involves awareness – An eye-tracking study

Abstract

People can learn and use both static and dynamic (cross-trial) regularities in the positioning of target items during parallel, ‘pop-out’ visual search. Static target-location learning also works in serial search, however, acquiring dynamic regularities is hindered by the demands of item-by-item scanning. Also, questions have been raised regarding whether explicit awareness is necessary for using dynamic regularities to optimize performance. The present study re-examined if dynamic regularities can be learned in serial search when regular shifts of the target location occur frequently, and if such learning correlates with awareness of the dynamic rule. We adopted the same regularity used by Yu et al. (2023) to demonstrate dynamic learning in parallel search: a cross-trial shift of the target location in a (counter-)clockwise direction within a circular array in 80 % of the trials, compared to irregular shifts in the opposite direction (10 %) or some other random direction (10 %). The results showed that about 70 % of participants learned the dynamic regularity, with performance gains correlating with awareness: the more accurately they estimated the likelihood of the target shifting in the frequent direction, the greater their gains. Importantly, part of the gains accrued already early during the search: a large proportion of the very first and short-latency eye movements were directed to the predicted location, regardless of the target appeared there. We discuss whether this rule-driven behavior is causally mediated by conscious control.