Vision and attention: the role of training

Abstract

What happens to visual experience in the absence of visual attention? Does lack of attention render us effectively blind1, or is there a significant residual experience? Here I show that the surprising results of a recent study1 were due not to the novel way in which attention was controlled, but simply to the use of novice rather than expert observers. So the evidence remains strong that some aspects of visual experience are essentially independent of attention.

Additional details