Simultaneous vision and audition: the detection of elements missing from overlearned sequences.

Abstract

Relative performance of vision and audition under conditions of simultaneous stimulation was investigated for rapid scanning tasks considered to exhibit 2 levels of difficulty. Subjects were required to detect elements missing from alphabets and numeral sequences when such sequences were presented simultaneously to the 2 senses in 1 of 4 combinations[long dash]visual alphabet with auditory alphabet, visual numeral with auditory numeral, visual alphabet with auditory numeral, or visual numeral with auditory alphabet. Performance on the simultaneous trials was compared with nonsimultaneous performance of the same conditions. The following conclusions may be drawn: (1) For nonsimultaneous operation more errors of omission were made with the alphabet sequences than with the numeral sequences. Significantly more auditory than visual errors of omission were committed with the numeral sequences. With the alphabet sequences there was no significant difference between the visual and auditory errors of omission. (2) For nonsimultaneous operation 4-5 times as many errors of commision were made with the auditory sequences as with the visual sequences. (3) Increase in the number of errors of omission from nonsimultaneous to simultaneous trials because of the conflicting nature of the material was not significantly greater for 1 modality or the other. (4) Increase in the number of errors of commission from nonsimultaneous to simultaneous trials was significantly greater for the visual trials than for the auditory.