Qualitative changes in binocular rivalry experience with age

Binocular rivalry is a visual phenomenon that occurs when two dissimilar stimuli are presented to each eye. The perception alternates between dominance periods when one of the stimuli is perceived with brief transition periods in between, providing a unique window into the dynamics of visual perception. While binocular rivalry dynamics are individually stable on a short time scale, they change with age. Previous research consistently showed that dominance durations increase with age while transition durations remain unchanged. However, the subjective appearance of transition periods can vary considerably even within an individual without any change in quantitative parameters. In the present study, we used a previously established methodology to investigate the change in subjective appearance of transitions in healthy adults across a continuous age range between 18 and 64. Consistent with prior studies, we found that dominance durations increased with age without any change in transition durations. Importantly, we observed age-related changes in transition appearance, which depended on the exact stimulus content used to induce binocular rivalry and were affecting only certain transition types. These results extend previous work by demonstrating that the qualitative experience of binocular rivalry can reflect important age-related changes which are not evident by conventional quantitative parameters.