Visual Search Processes in Camouflage Detection

Recent models of visual information processing have been applied to the results of a search/ detection task involving photographic slides of concealed soldiers. It was postulated that since camouflaged persons could be regarded as examples of threshold items, automatic detection should not occur. Even for relatively low-load (easy) items, reaction times were slower than those that would have been expected had automatic detection occurred. The systematic increase in reaction time with task load implies that feature-integration processing was required to achieve target detection. In pointing towards a possible strategy for target detection using real-world stimuli, the results of this report may be important in the design and interpretation of camouflage detection trials.