Two representational systems in dynamic visual identification.

How does the visual system retain and combine information about an object across time and space? This question was investigated by manipulating the spatiotemporal continuity and form continuity of 2 perceptual objects over time. In Experiment 1 the objects were viewed in central vision within a single eye fixation, in Experiment 2 they were viewed across a saccadic eye movement, and in Experiment 3 they were viewed at different spatial and retinal locations over time. In all 3 experiments some information about the object was found to be linked to its spatiotemporal continuity, and some information was found to be independent of spatiotemporal continuity. Form continuity was found to produce no effect. The results support a theory of dynamic visual identification according to which information is maintained over time both by episodic object representations and long-term memory representations, neither of which necessarily code specific sensory information.