The effects of varying target and background luminances were examined on a partial-report task of iconic memory. Experiment 1 demonstrated that with a dim preexposure and postexposure field, varying target luminance has a marked effect on performance. Increased luminance results in significantly longer iconic storage. In Experiment 2 performance on the task was determined as the background luminance was systematically increased. It was found that not only is the duration of iconic storage reduced by increasing background luminance but changes in target luminance have progressively less of an effect as background luminance increases. These results are discussed in terms of the known response properties of cone and rod photoreceptors and their potential contribution to iconic memory. Finally, possible reasons for discrepancies with other iconic memory studies are detailed.

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Two experiments were conducted to examine the role of sensory persistence on tasks of perceived duration employing very brief visual stimuli. Using a standard temporal judgment task, the first experiment replicated both the "size effect" and "empty-filled" illusion reported by previous investigators. However, entirely comparable results were also found with a probematching task, which theoretically assesses the degree of persistence exhibited by a stimulus. The second experiment examined the effect of target luminance on perceived duration. Consistent with a sensory persistence interpretation, judgments of duration increased with increasing luminance. The results from the two experiments were discussed in terms of varying degrees of retinal persistence produced by different stimuli. This view was contrasted with currently dominant interpretations that postulate changes in perceived duration to reflect different information-processing requirements across stimulus conditions.