Ronen Hershman

• Ph.D
• PostDoc Position at University of Innsbruck

Pupil dilation is an effective indicator of cognitive and affective processes. Although several eyetracker systems on the market can provide effective solutions for pupil dilation measurement, there is a lack of tools for processing and analyzing the data provided by these systems. For this reason, we developed CHAP: open-source software written in...

Pupillometry (or the measurement of pupil size) is commonly used as an index of cognitive load and arousal. Pupil size data are recorded using eyetracking devices that provide an output containing pupil size at various points in time. During blinks the eyetracking device loses track of the pupil, resulting in missing values in the output file. The...

It has been suggested that the Stroop task gives rise to two conflicts: the information conflict (color vs. word meaning) and the task conflict (name the color vs. read the word). However, behavioral indications for task conflict (RT congruent condition longer than RT neutral condition) appear under very restricted conditions. We conducted Stroop e...

The color-word Stroop task produces both information conflict (detection of the ink color vs. word meaning) and task conflict (respond to the ink color vs. read the word). In the present study we measured both reaction time and pupil dilation, and the neutral stimuli in our study were non-readable letter strings as well as meaningless non-readable...

In the typical Stroop task, participants are presented with color words written in different ink colors and are asked to respond to their color. It has been suggested that the Stroop task consists of two main conflicts: information conflict (color vs. word naming) and task conflict (respond to color vs. read the word). In the current study, we deve...

Background Recognizing familiar faces and identifying emotions through facial expressions are essential for social functioning. This study aimed to examine whether people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (PwMS) differ from healthy control individuals (HC) in their performance on different tasks related to facial emotion processing. Meth...

The numerical Stroop task involves presenting participants with two digits that differ in physical size and numerical value and asking them to report which digit had the larger size or value while ignoring the other dimension. Previous studies show that participants have difficulty ignoring the irrelevant dimension and thus have implications on the...

In the present study, we conducted a Stroop-like task in which the participants were required to decide whether the presented stimulus, which could be either a colored digit or a colored rectangle, consisted of more or less than five colors. Like other Stroop-like tasks, the stimuli could be congruent (the stimulus was a digit that was equal to the...

Pupillometry is frequently used to examine cognitive aspects. While the experimental issues should be addressed during the measuring itself, there are several aspects that should be taken into account during the processing and analysis of the observed data. In the present chapter, we will present the most important aspects that appear during the pr...

Behavioral differences in speed and accuracy between reading familiar and unfamiliar words are well-established in the empirical literature. However, these standard measures of skill proficiency are limited in their ability to capture the moment-to-moment processing involved in visual word recognition. In the present study, the effect of word famil...

In the standard color-word Stroop task, participants are presented with color words and required to respond to their color while ignoring their meaning. Two types of conflict might occur in such experiments: information conflict and task conflict. Information conflict reflects the processing of two contradicting pieces of information and is indicat...

Previous research found that when people are instructed to smile toward liked objects and show negative facial expressions toward disliked objects, their facial response is faster and more intense than when they are required to smile toward disliked objects and express negative facial response toward liked objects. The present research tested a tec...

Throughout the history of modern psychology, the neural basis of cognitive performance, and particularly its efficiency, has been assumed to be an essential determinant of developmental and individual differences in a wide range of human behaviors. Here, we examine one aspect of cognitive efficiency—cognitive effort, using pupillometry to examine d...

Studies of the Stroop color‐word task have provided evidence for the existence of two conflicts: (1) an early task conflict between noting the relevant color and reading afforded by the irrelevant word (or word‐like stimuli), and (2) a late information conflict between the information provided by the word and the information provided by the color....

Reaction time (RT) is one of the most frequently used measures to detect cognitive processes. When tasks require more cognitive processes / resources, reaction is slower. However, RTs may provide only restricted information regarding the temporal characteristics of cognitive processes. Pupils respond reflexively to light but also to cognitive activ...

Math fluency (MF) is the ability to quickly and accurately solve simple math exercises. Proficiency in MF is one of the buildings of arithmetic achievement during school. However, so far only paper and pencil tests have been used to assess MF. In the current study, we present the BGU‐MF (Ben‐Gurion University Math Fluency) test, a new computerized...

It has been suggested that the interference in the Stroop task arises due to both information conflict (color vs. word meaning) and task conflict (respond to the color vs. read the word). Interestingly, the task conflict (faster responses in the congruent condition compared to the neutral condition) is influenced by the readability of the stimulus....

Shaded 2D images often create an illusion of depth, due to the shading information and assumptions regarding the location of the light source. Specifically, 2D images that are lighter on top usually appear convex while images that are darker on top, usually appear concave, reflecting the assumption that light is coming from above. The process of re...

The Stroop task gives rise to two major conflicts: the task conflict (respond to the color vs. read the word) and the information conflict that can result from the stimulus–response compatibility (SRC; difference between two responses) or from the stimulus–stimulus compatibility (SSC; difference between the two contradictive pieces of information)....

Pupil dilation is an effective indicator of cognitive load [1]. There are many available eye tracker systems in the market that provide effective solutions for pupil dilation measurement, which can be used to assess different cognitive and affective processes. However, there is a lack of tools for processing and analyzing the data provided by these...