Visual lobe dimensions and search performance for targets on a competing homogeneous background

The relationship between visual lobe area and search performance has been demonstrated by previous researchers under a variety of experimental conditions and using different measures of lobe area. The relationship has not been as highly significant as might be expected, given the obvious importance of lobe area for search performance. Using uniform stimulus material for lobe size and search performance tests, specifying viewing distance, controlling the presentation of search task material, and eliminating some extreme search strategy options, we obtained a very highly significant correlation between lobe area and search performance for 54 Cantonese Chinese subjects. This result was obtained in spite of the subjects* homogeneity with regard to age and near foveal acuity. An unexpected result was that, relative to the horizontal lobe dimension, the vertical dimension was highly significantly related to lobe area and to search performance. © 1986 Psychonomic Society, Inc.