A singleton distractor updates the inhibitory template for visual marking

Visual marking, which is based on the assumption that previewing some distractors increases the efficiency of subsequent visual searches, constitutes one of the most efficient inhibitions on visual searches. The preview search task consists of a display of a subset of distractors followed by an additional display containing the remaining distractors and a target. During the preview period, an inhibitory template is thought to be formed, resulting in the prioritization of the subsequently presented items and the inhibition of the previewed items. Although the previous studies have mainly examined the determinants that impair the inhibitory templates resulting in inefficient visual searches, the present study examined the possibility that the template could be updated to increase search efficiency. To this end, we used a preview search task and manipulated the presence of a singleton distractor in the display of the additional items. We examined whether the singleton increased the efficiency of the search performance by determining if the inhibitory template would be updated such that participants would treat the singleton as if it had been previewed. The results demonstrated that the response times were faster with the singleton included, suggesting that an inhibitory template for visual marking could be updated and lead to improved search performance. •A color singleton distractor among additional items enhanced search performance when visual marking occurred.•A color singleton distractor did not enhance search performance in the ordinary simultaneous search task.•A color singleton distractor among additional items did not enhance search performance when visual marking did not occur.•Only a color cuing did not enhance search performance in the ordinary simultaneous search task.