Pattern perception: integrating information presented in two modalities.

Subjects were required to organize and identify temporal patterns composed of either (i) two stimuli in one modality; (ii) two stimuli in each of two modalities, with the pattern alternately presented in the two modalities; or (iii) one stimulus in each of two modalities. Patterns (i) and (iii) are organized as structured patterns, but (ii) is organized by modality, not by pattern structure. When elements of a pattern appear in two modalities, the auditory-tactual combination produces the poorest performance.