Recent research shows that, under certain conditions, visual
attention is object-based. That is, attention preferentially
selects objects in the visual field. These objects are processed,
culminating in object recognition. On this formulation, the
objects selected by attention are perceptual groups determined
by the principles of perceptual organization of Gestalt
psychology. These groups are formed independently of
attentional processes and conceptual knowledge. This view is
not consistent with available data about the visual system,
which shows that perceptual organization is sensitive to
conceptual information, depends on attentional processes, and
infers representations that best explain the visual stimulus.
Here, I propose a new account of visual attention that aims to
correct these limitations of the Gestalt-based formulation. The
nature of the object representations underlying perceptual and
attentional mechanisms is discussed. It is proposed that
attention and perception interact in an iterative process
wherein constraints imposed both by the visual stimulus and
an observer’s cognitive set determine the “objects” to which
attention is allocated. Thus, visual attention is object based
precisely because it is intricately involved in perceptual
organization, and not because it selects the output of
perceptual organization, as is generally claimed. Experimental
results that support the claim that attention influences
perceptual organization are reviewed. Finally, the
implications for human factors research and the metaphysics
of everyday objects are discussed