Selection of obstacle avoidance reach trajectories

In two experiments we studied the role of visual attention during the preparation of manual movements around an obstacle. Participants performed rapid hand movements to a goal position avoiding a central obstacle either on the right or on the left side, depending on the pitch of the acoustic go-signal. We used a dot probe paradigm to analyze the deployment of spatial attention in the visual field during the motor preparation period. Briefly after the go signal but still before the hand movement actually started, a visual transient was flashed either on the planned pathway of the and or on the opposite, movement-irrelevant side.