Evidence for neural rhythms embedded within binocular rivalry

Abstract

Evidence for perceptual periodicity emerges from studies showing periodic fluctuations in visual perception and decision making that are accompanied by neural oscillations in brain activity. We have uncovered signs of periodicity in the time course of binocular rivalry, a widely studied form of multistable perception. This was done by analyzing time series data contained in an unusually large dataset of rivalry state durations associated with states of exclusive monocular dominance and states of mixed perception during transitions between exclusive dominance. Identifiable within the varying durations of dynamic mixed perception are rhythmic clusters of durations whose incidence falls within the frequency band associated with oscillations in neural activity accompanying periodicity in perceptual judgments. Endogenous neural oscillations appear to be especially impactful when perception is unusually confounding.