On the Interaction Between Stimulus Features and Context in the Perception of Causality

Abstract

Much research has supported the hypothesis that the perceptual system generates impressions of causality based on simple cues available in the environment. We review evidence that this extraction of causal relations from perceptual cues is likely an automatic property of the visual system akin to other basic perceptual processes, such as perceptual grouping and illusory contour completion. We posit that it is this automatic characteristic of perceptual causality that underlies the proliferation of context effects associated with perceived causal events. Here, the presence of a perceived causal relationship may impact the perception of other features of the causal stimulus and other stimuli surrounding the causal event. We discuss current research, and present future research directions that promise to uncover some of the mechanisms underlying how causality is attributed from, and changes how we perceive and respond to, simple low-level stimuli in the environment. Such research will enrich our understanding of how the perception of causally-relevant stimulus features interacts with their context to enable us to effectively perceive, understand, and act upon our environment.