WHAT IS INHIBITED IN INHIBITION OF RETURN

Research on temporal-order judgments, reference frames, discrimination tasks, and links to oculomotor control suggest important differences between inhibition of return (IOR) and attentional costs and benefits. Yet, it is generally assumed that IOR is an attentional effect even t hough there is little supporting evidence. The authors evaluated this assumption by examining how several factors that are known to influenc e attentional costs and benefits affect the magnitude of IOR: target m odality, target intensity, and response mode. Results similar to those previously reported for attention were observed: IOR was greater for visual than for auditory targets, showed an inverse relationship with target intensity, and was equivalent for manual and saccadic responses . Important parallels between IOR and attentional costs and benefits a re indicated, suggesting that, like attention, IOR may in part affect sensory-perceptual processes.