Molly R. McKinney¹, Brad T. Stilwell¹, Brian A. Anderson¹; ¹Texas A&M University

In visual search, attentional priority can be upweighted to enhance target-related features and downweighed to suppress distractor-related features based on experiential learning, or selection history. However, it is unknown whether these selection history effects modulate information processing at the level of perception. To test this question, individuals performed a visual search task with predictable target and distractor features. Specifically, in Experiment 1, in a between-subjects design, we presented a color singleton among three nonsingleton items that served as a distractor for one group, the target for another group, or was equally likely to be the target or distractor in a third group; the color of the singleton was fixed across trials in each group. In Experiment 2 we used two-color, eight-item displays. One color was always used for distractors when presented and a second color was always used for the target when presented; a pair of other colors unpredictably included the target in their subset. To test whether selection history would change perception of the predictive features, we used a psychophysical task whereby participants attempted to detect either the presence of a briefly presented color singleton (Experiment 1) or identity of the color of a briefly presented, uniformly colored stimulus array (Experiment 2). Across both experiments, participants showed more efficient search for the learned colors, enhancing the consistent target color and suppressing the consistent distractor color. However, we did not observe corresponding changes in perception of these colors, with no change in accuracy to detect or identify the briefly presented stimuli. These results suggest that attentional priority for previously learned features can boost visual search performance without influencing the perceived salience of briefly presented stimuli.