Can we “see” value? Spatiotopic “visual” adaptation to an imperceptible dimension

Abstract

In much recent philosophy of mind and cognitive science, repulsive adaptation effects are considered a litmus test — a crucial marker, that distinguishes what is perceived from what is judged at the level of post-perceptual thought or cognition. Here, we provide evidence for a form of adaptation that challenges this contention. Across four experiments, we found consistent evidence of adaptation to a seemingly imperceptible dimension: arbitrarily assigned value. We show that this adaptation occurs across stimulus formats, is spatially indexed (i.e., spatiotopic) and otherwise analogous to putative cases of high-level visual adaptation in relevant respects. Combined, we suggest that our results force one of two conclusions: Either repulsive perceptual adaptation can be obtained for seemingly imperceptible dimensions, or — as we proceed to argue — adaptation fails to reliably demarcate perceptual content.