Scene Consistency Effect and Its Mechanisms

The present paper reviewed the evidence for scene consistency effect accumulated recently. Behavioral studies showed that participants performed better in naming, categorizing, searching and recognizing consistent objects (which appeared in usual context) than inconsistent objects (which appeared in unusual context). ERP studies demonstrated that inconsistent objects, compared with consistent objects, induced a larger negative-going wave (N390) especially in centro-parietal sites. fMRI studies revealed that PHC/PPA and RSC played important roles in scene processing. Theories proposed to explain the scene consistency effect were also discussed.