Two stages in crossmodal saccadic integration: evidence from a visual-auditory focused attention task

Saccadic reaction time (SRT) toward a visual target stimulus was measured under simultaneous presentation of an auditory non-target (accessory stimulus). Horizontal position of the target was varied (25degrees left and right of fixation) as well as position and intensity of the auditory accessory. SRT was reduced under the presence of the accessory, and it decreased both with increasing intensity of the auditory accessory and with decreasing distance between target and accessory. The absence of a significant interaction between distance and auditory intensity suggests (1) that the intensity of the accessory stimulus has no direct influence on the process of crossmodal integration, and (2) that spatial position and intensity of the accessory are processed in separate stages. This was supported by a probability inequality test showing that the amount of neural coactivation depends on spatial distance but not on auditory intensity. The results are discussed in the framework of a two-stage model assuming separate processing of unimodal and bimodal characteristics of the stimuli. These results are related to several recent neurophysiological findings.