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A mental image is in many ways analogous to a percept but it is not completely identical to it. In some respects, visual perception and visual imagery work in different ways. One area which is worth examining with regard to similarities and asymmetries between perception and imagery is the initial phases of visual information processing. The literature includes some references to the equivalence of imagery and perception in optical illusions, but data are contradictory. In our view, a mental image should not be particularly sensitive to variables which are critical in producing an optical illusion, i.e., variables affecting the early phases of information processing and field global effects. Our hypothesis is that an optical illusion will be present in a perception condition but not in an equivalent imagery condition. To test this, we carried out two experiments using the Ebbinghaus illusion and the Ponzo illusion. The results confirmed our hypothesis, demonstrating that there are indeed asymmetries between perception and imagery and that such differences mainly concern specific perceptual processes that differ from those involved in the generation of a mental image.

In two experiments, we examined deaf and hard of hearing adolescents' memory for prose as compared to that of hearing students. The study focused on the possibility that deaf and hard of hearing readers might make relatively less use of relational information in textual materials. Text structure and material concreteness were manipulated, and memory for relational and distinctive information was assessed. Results indicated that deaf and hard of hearing students remembered the abstract materials as well as they did the concrete materials. They were less likely than hearing students to remember idea units (concrete or abstract) holistically within passages, but they showed relatively better memory for individual words. This difference disappeared when the same sentences were presented without global paragraph coherence. The findings suggest that deaf and hard of hearing readers may be less likely than hearing readers to integrate text information across idea units, although they may retain as much information from within units.

Abstract. A decline in cognitive functioning is part of physiological aging. Accelerated cognitive decline is frequently linked to pathological changes, mostly due to Alzheimer's Disease (AD), but is present also in Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) which is a predictor of transition to dementia. This review aims to summarize possible preventive biological and psychological treatments in different stages of lifespan to avoid more rapid cognitive decline and prevent pathological aging. Psychophysiological approaches aim to prevent brain damage and inflammation, two factors playing probably a major role in middle and old age. Interventions on working memory and imagery, using "cognitive reserve," are beneficial for tolerating neuropathological age-related changes. Some controversial results are outlined, suggesting explanations for the inconsistency of findings. Although clear evidence from interventional studies is lacking, it seems that multi-domain interventions should be recommended to avoid or delay cognitive decline.