Seeing it both ways: Openness to experience and binocular rivalry suppression

People high in openness to experience tend to have more flexible and inclusive cognition, and this extends to basic visual perception. In two studies using binocular rivalry—where the brain alternates between competing perceptual images—openness was positively associated with longer durations of mixed percept, a state where neither image is fully suppressed. Study 1 ruled out response bias as an explanation. Study 2 found that a positive mood induction increased mixed percept duration, especially for open individuals. The results indicate that openness is linked to differences in low-level visual perceptual experience, possibly driven by common neural processes.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Openness to experience is characterised by flexible and inclusive cognition. Here we investigated whether this extends to basic visual perception, such that open people combine information more flexibly, even at low-levels of perceptual processing. We used binocular rivalry, where the brain alternates between perceptual solutions and times where neither solution is fully suppressed, mixed percept. Study 1 showed that openness is positively associated with duration of mixed percept and ruled out the possibility of response bias. Study 2 showed that mixed percept increased following a positive mood induction particularly for open people. Overall, the results showed that openness is linked to differences in low-level visual perceptual experience. Further studies should investigate whether this may be driven by common neural processes.