How does the visual system keep track of time when events unfold rapidly?

In this new study, we investigated how visual masking influences the perception of temporal order. When two stimuli are presented in sequence, observers can normally report which one appeared first. However, under certain conditions, this judgment can break down—and even reverse.

We show that a visual mask presented shortly after the second stimulus (within ~30 ms) can induce temporal inversions, where participants systematically report the wrong order. Crucially, this effect does not depend on spatial overlap: even masks that avoid the stimulus locations produce the same distortion.

This suggests that the mechanism is not purely spatial, but instead relies on a fast temporal signal triggered by the mask. When this signal occurs at the right moment, it appears to interfere with the ongoing updating process, effectively reshaping the perceived timing of events.

Finally, the effect generalizes across spatial configurations, for example, with both ipsilateral and contralateral masks (which do not spatially overlap with the stimuli), pointing to the involvement of long-range inhibitory signals rather than strictly local interactions.

Overall, these results suggest that visual masking does not simply suppress information, but can actively reorganize the temporal structure of perception.

Read the full article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13506285.2026.2647350