Description
Responses to bimodal signals are typically faster than responses to unimodal signals, a phenomenon known as the redundant signal effect (RSE). Traditionally, the RSE is studied using tasks that require participants to perform the same motor action when detecting targets in either modality. The RSE can be explained either by pooling models, where sensory evidence is integrated to cross a shared response threshold, or by race models, where parallel processes race to cross one of two separate thresholds. Distinguishing between these accounts has proven challenging under a behavioural paradigm that fails to differentiate the two accounts. To address this, we modified the task, requiring participants to press distinct buttons corresponding to the modality they first detected under a signal onset asynchrony (SOA) manipulation. In bimodal trials, the proportion of button presses corresponding to a specific modality was predictably modulated as a function of SOA, confirming adherence to task instructions. Notably, the two-button task yielded RSE patterns consistent with predictions from the race account. Even though modalities were mapped to separate responses, responses violated Miller’s bound, a finding often interpreted as evidence for pooling. Our results suggest that introducing a two-button instruction can clarify the mechanisms underlying the RSE.| Period | 10 Jul 2025 |
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| Event title | Joint Experimental Psychology Society and Canadian Society of Brain Behaviour and Cognitive Science Meeting: Joint July 2025 Meeting |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Dundee, United KingdomShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |