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Introspective inference counteracts perceptual distortion.

Authors :
Mihali A
Broeker M
Ragalmuto FDM
Horga G
Source :
Nature communications [Nat Commun] 2023 Nov 29; Vol. 14 (1), pp. 7826. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Nov 29.
Publication Year :
2023

Abstract

Introspective agents can recognize the extent to which their internal perceptual experiences deviate from the actual states of the external world. This ability, also known as insight, is critically required for reality testing and is impaired in psychosis, yet little is known about its cognitive underpinnings. We develop a Bayesian modeling framework and a psychophysics paradigm to quantitatively characterize this type of insight while people experience a motion after-effect illusion. People can incorporate knowledge about the illusion into their decisions when judging the actual direction of a motion stimulus, compensating for the illusion (and often overcompensating). Furthermore, confidence, reaction-time, and pupil-dilation data all show signatures consistent with inferential adjustments in the Bayesian insight model. Our results suggest that people can question the veracity of what they see by making insightful inferences that incorporate introspective knowledge about internal distortions.<br /> (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
2041-1723
Volume :
14
Issue :
1
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Nature communications
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
38030601
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42813-2