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Semantic priming modulates the strength and direction of the Kanizsa illusion

Poster Session D - Monday, March 9, 2026, 8:00 – 10:00 am PDT, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballroom

Amir Tal^1,2 (), Nataly Davidson Litvak², Liad Mudrik²; ¹Hebrew University of Jerusalem, ²Tel Aviv University

Visual illusions are often considered key examples for cognitive impenetrability, as they are held not to be affected by non-perceptual processes. We revisit this claim in five preregistered experiments focused on the Kanizsa illusion, where a nonexistent shape is experienced due to filling-in of illusory contours. Three Pac-Man-like shapes inducing the Kanizsa illusion of a triangle were preceded by a prime that was either semantically related to the Pac-Man characters or not. We hypothesized that the semantic prime would promote a non-holistic interpretation of the Kanizsa inducers as individual Pac-Man characters, thus biasing participants against perceiving the illusion. In Experiment 1, the semantic prime was a picture of a Pac-Man maze. In Experiments 3 and 4, it was the word ‘Pac-Man’. As expected, a difference between the prime groups was found, with fewer detections of the Kanizsa triangle shape when participants were semantically primed with Pac-Man related stimuli. To show that the effect does not stem from mere attentional engagement by a meaningful prime, a non-Pac-Man related semantic prime was used in experiment 2, and no difference between the groups was found. Finally, in Experiment 5, we showed the opposite effect, with semantic priming of the illusory shape (‘Triangle’) enhancing the probability of seeing the Kanizsa illusion. Taken together, the results suggest that semantic priming can affect the probability of experiencing the Kanizsa illusion, thus supporting claims of cognitive penetrability.

Topic Area: PERCEPTION & ACTION: Vision