Abstract:
Visual search (VS) comprises a class of tasks that we typically perform several times during a day and requires intentionally scanning (with or without moving the eyes) the environment for a specific target (be it an object or a feature) among distractor stimuli. Experimental research in lab-based or real-world settings has offered insight into its underlying neurocognitive mechanisms from a nomothetic point of view. A lesser-known but rapidly growing body of quasi-experimental and correlational research has explored the link between individual differences and VS performance. This combines different research traditions and covers a wide range of individual differences in studies deploying a vast array of VS tasks. As such, it is a challenge to determine whether any associations highlighted in single studies are robust when considering the wider literature. However, clarifying such relationships systematically and comprehensively would help build more accurate models of VS, and it would highlight promising directions for future research. This systematic review provides an up to date and comprehensive synthesis of the existing literature investigating associations between common indices of performance in VS tasks and measures of individual differences mapped onto four categories of cognitive abilities (short-term working memory, fluid reasoning, visual processing and processing speed) and seven categories of traits (Big Five traits, trait anxiety and autistic traits). Consistent associations for both traits (in particular, conscientiousness, autistic traits and trait anxiety - the latter limited to emotional stimuli) and cognitive abilities (particularly visual processing) were identified. Overall, however, informativeness of future studies would benefit from checking and reporting the reliability of all measurement tools, applying multiplicity correction, using complementary techniques, study preregistration and testing why, rather than only if, a robust relation between certain individual differences and VS performance exists.
摘要:
视觉搜索(VS)包括一类任务,我们通常在一天中执行几次,并且需要在干扰因素刺激中有意扫描(有或没有移动眼睛)特定目标(无论是对象还是特征)的环境。在基于实验室或现实世界的环境中进行的实验研究从一个名义的角度提供了对其潜在神经认知机制的见解。鲜为人知但快速增长的准实验和相关研究机构探索了个体差异与VS表现之间的联系。这结合了不同的研究传统,涵盖了部署大量VS任务的研究中广泛的个体差异。因此,在考虑更广泛的文献时,确定单项研究中强调的任何关联是否稳健是一个挑战.然而,系统和全面地阐明这种关系将有助于建立更准确的VS模型,它将突出未来研究的有希望的方向。本系统综述提供了对现有文献的最新和全面综合,这些文献调查了VS任务中常见的性能指标与映射到四类认知能力(短期工作记忆,流体推理,视觉处理和处理速度)和七类性状(五大性状,特质焦虑和自闭症特征)。这两个特征的一致关联(特别是,尽责,自闭症特征和特质焦虑-后者仅限于情绪刺激)和认知能力(尤其是视觉处理)被确定。总的来说,然而,未来研究的信息将受益于检查和报告所有测量工具的可靠性,应用多重性校正,使用互补技术,研究预注册和测试为什么,而不仅仅是如果,某些个体差异与VS表现之间存在稳健的关系。