An evidence accumulation model of perceptual discrimination with naturalistic stimuli

Abstract

Evidence accumulation models have been used to describe the cognitive processes underlying performance in tasks involving 2-choice decisions about unidimensional stimuli, such as motion or orientation. Given the multidimensionality of natural stimuli, however, we might expect qualitatively different patterns of evidence accumulation in more applied perceptual tasks. One domain that relies heavily on human decisions about complex natural stimuli is fingerprint discrimination. We know little about the ability of evidence accumulation models to account for the dynamic decision process of a fingerprint examiner resolving if 2 different prints belong to the same finger or different fingers. Here, we apply a dynamic decision-making model-the linear ballistic accumulator (LBA)-to fingerprint discrimination decisions to gain insight into the cognitive processes underlying these complex perceptual judgments. Across 3 experiments, we show that the LBA provides an accurate description of the fingerprint discrimination decision process with manipulations in visual noise, speed-accuracy emphasis, and training. Our results demonstrate that the LBA is a promising model for furthering our understanding of applied decision-making with naturally varying visual stimuli. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).