The Perceptual Fragmentation of Unstabilized Images

The readiness with which different stimuli disappear when viewed as stabilized images is compared with their behaviour in binocular and monocular rivalry. The results normally associated with stabilized images are reproduced in these non-stabilized conditions. In the context of monocular rivalry, where a red figure that is superimposed on a green field readily disappears, two additional observations are made. First, the nature of the field boundary within which images are viewed, influences their readiness to disappear. Angular figures disappear more or less readily than curved figures, depending whether the field boundary is circular or square. Second, the movement masking phenomenon, previously observed in binocular rivalry and stabilized imagery, is reproduced in monocular rivalry.