Some people can't see, but still think they can: here's how the brain controls our visionĬurrent theories propose that when we imagine something, we try to reactivate the same pattern of activity in our brain as when we saw the image before. Research in the general population shows that visual imagery involves a network of brain activity spanning from the frontal cortex all the way to the visual areas at the back of the brain. This suggests they don’t have a problem with introspection, but appear to have no visual imagery. We found that when the aphantasics tried to form a mental image, their attempted imagined picture had no effect on what they saw in the binocular rivalry illusion. They repeated this for close to 100 trials. They then indicated which image they saw.
In our study, we asked self-described aphantasics to imagine either a red circle with horizontal lines or a green circle with vertical lines for six seconds before being presented with a binocular rivalry display while wearing the glasses. Because we’re not relying on the participant rating the vividness of the image in their mind, but on what they physically see in the binocular rivalry display, it removes the need for subjective introspection. We use how often a person sees the image they imagine as a measure of objective visual imagery. And the stronger your imagery is the more frequently you will see the image you imagine.
For example, if I asked you to imagine a green image, you will be more likely to see the green image once you’ve put on 3D glasses. One way is by getting them to imagine one of the two images beforehand. from īut we can influence which of the coloured images someone will see in the binocular rivalry display. When people are presented with two completely different superimposed images, a person will be able to see only a red or blue image when wearing 3D glasses – not both at the same time. When images are superimposed onto the glasses, we can’t see both images at once, so our brain is constantly switching from the green to the red image. To induce this, participants wear 3D red-green glasses, where one eye sees a red image and the other eye a green one. To assess visual imagery objectively, without having to rely on someone’s ability to describe what they imagine, we used a technique known as binocular rivalry – where perception alternates between different images presented one to each eye. In a recent study we set out to investigate whether aphantasics are really “blind in the mind” or if they have difficulty introspecting reliably. This means it’s not that their minds are blind, but they lack an internal consciousness of such images. Another idea is that aphantasics create internal images just like everyone else, but are not conscious of them. Some researchers have suggested aphantasia may actually be a case of poor introspection that aphantasics are in fact creating the same images in their mind as perhaps you and I, but it is their description of them that differs. Perhaps we see different things but describe them the same. They depend on a person’s ability to assess their own mental processes – called introspection.īut how can I know that what you see in your mind is different to what I see? Perhaps we see the same thing but describe it differently. These studies, however, relied on self-reports, which are subjective in nature. In the late 1800s, British scientist Sir Francis Galton conducted research asking colleagues and the general population to describe the quality of their internal imagery. The idea some people are born wholly unable to imagine is not new. Some people have no ability to visually imagine. But he can’t conjure up beaches he’s visited in his mind, nor does he have any capacity to create a mental image of a beach. He knows there’s sand and water and other facts about beaches. We're capable of infinite memory, but where in the brain is it stored, and what parts help retrieve it?Īs Ross describes it, he can ruminate on the “concept” of a beach.
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They often describe them as a conceptual list of things that occurred rather than a movie reel playing in their mind.
Anecdotal reports from our aphantasic participants indicate that while they are able to remember things from their past, they don’t experience these memories in the same way as someone with strong imagery. Visual imagery is involved in many everyday tasks, such as remembering the past, navigation and facial recognition, to name a few. They too were astonished to discover that their complete lack of ability to picture visual imagery was different from the norm. We’ve heard from many people who have experienced a similar epiphany to Ross. What do you mean ‘lost’ his ability? Shouldn’t we be amazed he ever had that ability?
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