Blindsight vs weaksight.
Hakwan Lau, Tomoya Nakamura
Cerebral Cortex September 1, 2026 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhag146 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Commentary Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Blindsight Consciousness Psychophysics |
| Key points | The authors argue that recent evidence for early post-lesional blindsight-like behavior in macaques is inconclusive because reduced saccade rates may reflect degraded sensory processing or decision criteria rather than unawareness. They propose that decisive tests compare matched Yes/No and two-alternative forced-choice sensitivity using signal-detection theory, potentially aided by reaction-time methods, to establish genuine dissociations and enable reversible animal models of awareness-specific neural mechanisms. |
Abstract
Blindsight is a highly informative phenomenon because it dissociates relatively preserved visual function from subjective awareness, unlike other common experimental paradigms that often confound unawareness with weak or near-absence of perception. We assess recent evidence for early post-lesional blindsight-like behavior in macaques and wonder if reduced saccade rates may alternatively reflect degraded sensory processing or decision criteria. Decisive tests should compare matched Yes/No and two-alternative forced-choice sensitivity using signal-detection theory, potentially aided by reaction-time methods. Establishing genuine early dissociations would enable reversible animal models and more rigorous identification of neural mechanisms specific to awareness rather than visual processing strength.