Does the gamma distribution refer to an underlying mechanism in binocular rivalry?
” Perception 26 ECVP Abstract Supplement Does the gamma distribution refer to an underlying mechanism in binocular rivalry? P H C Vallen, P R Snoeren, Ch M M de Weert Thirty years ago, Levelt (1967 British Journal of Psychology 58 143 – 145) fitted the distribution of dominance times in binocular rivalry with the gamma distribution (the distribution function of waiting times for N random events with process speed lambda). Ever since, the gamma distribution has been used to describe the rivalry phase durations, without an explanatory underlying mechanism being given. Although Levelt suggested lambda to be proportional to the stimulus strength (eg contrast, luminance, blur, amount of contour) and N to be ‘successive neural spikes’, this suggestion has never been tested. The purpose of this study was to test whether or not N and lambda represent characteristics of the observer and the stimulus, respectively. To collect the data as accurately as possible, we performed a large number of mea
