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Purpose: Previous studies considered the possibility that individuals with impaired stereoacuity can be identified by estimating the perceived depth of a target with a suprathreshold retinal image disparity. These studies showed that perceived suprathreshold depth is reduced when the image presented to one eye is blurred, but they did not address whether a similar reduction of perceived depth occurs when the stereothreshold is elevated using other manipulations., Methods: Stereothresholds were measured in six adult observers for a pair of bright 1-degree vertical lines during normal viewing and under five conditions that elevated the stereothreshold: monocular dioptric blur, monocular glare, binocular luminance reduction, monocular luminance reduction, and imposed disjunctive image motion. The observers subsequently matched the perceived depth of degraded targets presented with crossed or uncrossed disparities corresponding to two, four, and six times the elevated stereothreshold for each stimulus condition., Results: The image manipulations used elevated the stereothreshold by a factor of 3.7 to 5.5 times. For targets with suprathreshold disparities, monocular blur, monocular luminance reduction, and disjunctive image motion resulted in a significant decrease in perceived depth. However, the magnitude of perceived suprathreshold depth was unaffected when monocular glare was introduced or the binocular luminance of the stereotargets was reduced., Conclusions: Not all conditions that increase the stereothreshold reduce the perceived depth of targets with suprathreshold disparities. Observers who have poor stereopsis therefore may or may not exhibit an associated reduction of perceived suprathreshold depth.

Purpose: Reports of dissimilar stereothresholds for contour and random-dot (RD) targets may reflect differences in stimulus properties or differences between local and global stereoscopic processing mechanisms. In this study, we evaluated whether the stereothresholds obtained using low- and high-density RD stimuli are consistent with a distinction between local and global disparity processing., Methods: Stereothresholds were measured in eight normal subjects for a small disparate line segment superimposed on RD surrounds with densities that ranged between 0.07 and 28.3%., Results: Stereothresholds averaged 0.23 arc min for an RD density of 0.39% and approximately doubled for lower and higher densities. The increase in stereothresholds at low densities is likely because of the increased spacing between elements, which reduces their usefulness as a reference for relative disparity judgments. The increase in stereothresholds at high densities is attributed to a crowding effect., Conclusions: Because the stereothresholds measured with RD stimuli of low and high density are limited by different constraints, they can be considered to be different types of stereotargets. However, because the stereothresholds measured for RD targets of varying densities are similar to those determined previously for a local, two-rod stereotarget, it is likely that all these stimuli are processed by a single disparity-processing mechanism.

Several previous studies reported differences when stereothresholds are assessed with local-contour stereograms vs. complex random-dot stereograms (RDSs). Dissimilar thresholds may be due to differences in the properties of the stereograms (e.g. spatial frequency content, contrast, inter-element separation, area) or to different underlying processing mechanisms. This study examined the transfer of perceptual learning of depth discrimination between local and global RDSs with similar properties, and vice versa. If global and local stereograms are processed by separate neural mechanisms, then the magnitude and rate of training for the two types of stimuli are likely to differ, and the transfer of training from one stimulus type to the other should be minimal. Based on previous results, we chose RDSs with element densities of 0.17% and 28.3% to serve as the local and global stereograms, respectively. Fourteen inexperienced subjects with normal binocular vision were randomly assigned to either a local- or global- RDS training group. Stereothresholds for both stimulus types were measured before and after 7700 training trials distributed over 10 sessions. Stereothresholds for the trained condition improve for approximately 3000 trials, by an average of 0.36+/-0.08 for local and 0.29+/-0.10 for global RDSs, and level off thereafter. Neither the rate nor the magnitude of improvement differ statistically between the local- and global-training groups. Further, no significant difference exists in the amount of improvement on the trained vs. the untrained targets for either training group. These results are consistent with the operation of a single mechanism to process both local and global stereograms., (Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Perceptual learning is a training induced improvement in performance. Mechanisms underlying the perceptual learning of depth discrimination in dynamic random dot stereograms were examined by assessing stereothresholds as a function of decorrelation. The inflection point of the decorrelation function was defined as the level of decorrelation corresponding to 1.4 times the threshold when decorrelation is 0%. In general, stereothresholds increased with increasing decorrelation. Following training, stereothresholds and standard errors of measurement decreased systematically for all tested decorrelation values. Post training decorrelation functions were reduced by a multiplicative constant (approximately 5), exhibiting changes in stereothresholds without changes in the inflection points. Disparity energy model simulations indicate that a post-training reduction in neuronal noise can sufficiently account for the perceptual learning effects. In two subjects, learning effects were retained over a period of six months, which may have application for training stereo deficient subjects.