Speed Overestimation of the Moving Away Object in the Intentional Reaction Causal Effect

We describe a new illusory speed effect arising in visual events developed by Michotte (1946/1963) in studies of causal perception and, more specifically, within the so-called intentional reaction effect: When an Object B is seen intentionally escaping from another Object A, its perceived speed is overestimated. In Experiment 1, we used two-alternative forced choice comparisons to estimate perceived speed scale values for a small square moving either alone or in different contexts known to elicit different impressions of animacy (Parovel et al., 2018). The results showed that B’s speed was overestimated only in the condition in which it moved away from another approaching square moving in a nonrigid way, like a caterpillar. In Experiment 2, we psychophysically measured the magnitude of speed overestimation in that condition and tested whether it could be affected by further animacy cues related to the escaping object (the actual velocity of the square) and to the approaching square (its type of motion: caterpillar or linear). Results confirmed that B’s speed was overestimated up to 10% and that the degree of overestimation was affected by both experimental factors, being greater at higher speeds and when the chasing object moved in an animate fashion. This speed bias might be related to a higher sensitivity of the visual processes to threat-related events such as fighting and chasing, leading to evolutionary adaptive behaviours such as speedy flight from predators, but also empathy and emotion understanding.