The influence of stimulus direction and eccentricity on pro- and anti-saccades in humans

Abstract

We examined the sensory and motor influences of stimulus eccentricity and direction on saccadic reaction times (SRTs), direction-of-movement errors, and saccade amplitude for stimulus-driven (prosaccade) and volitional (antisaccade) oculomotor responses in humans. Stimuli were presented at five eccentricities, ranging from 0.5 degrees to 8 degrees , and in eight radial directions around a central fixation point. At 0.5 degrees eccentricity, participants showed delayed SRT and increased direction-of-movement errors consistent with misidentification of the target and fixation points. For the remaining eccentricities, horizontal saccades had shorter mean SRT than vertical saccades. Stimuli in the upper visual field trigger overt shifts in gaze more easily and faster than in the lower visual field: prosaccades to the upper hemifield had shorter SRT than to the lower hemifield, and more anti-saccade direction-of-movement errors were made into the upper hemifield. With the exception of the 0.5 degrees stimuli, SRT was independent of eccentricity. Saccade amplitude was dependent on target eccentricity for prosaccades, but not for antisaccades within the range we tested. Performance matched behavioral measures described previously for monkeys performing the same tasks, confirming that the monkey is a good model for the human oculomotor function. We conclude that an upper hemifield bias lead to a decrease in SRT and an increase in direction errors.