About

Cheryl Olman is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Minnesota, affiliated with the College of Liberal Arts. She employs a combination of visual psychophysics and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate how detection of local image features interacts with scene perception. Her research explores how local features in an image are selected and grouped to construct mental representations of scenes or objects, and examines the role of internal templates in shaping perception. Additionally, she studies the linkage between what BOLD fMRI measures—changes in blood oxygenation—and the underlying neural activity, focusing on questions such as whether the blood flow response is driven by input or output of visual areas, the balance of excitation and inhibition, and how vascular regulation influences the interpretation of neural activity across spatial regions. Professor Olman holds a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Minnesota and a B.S. in Physics from Michigan State University. Her work has contributed to understanding the neural networks of early visual cortex, the effects of orientation and attention during surround suppression, and the depth-dependent responses in V1 and V2 to chromatic and achromatic stimuli. She has been recognized with awards including the Career Readiness Teaching Award in 2022, the Horace T. Morse-University of Minnesota Alumni Association Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education in 2019, and the University of Minnesota President’s Award for Outstanding Service in 2021. Her courses include hands-on training in functional imaging, introduction to sensation and perception, and neuroimaging in psychology.

Research topics

• Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Artificial intelligence
• Computer science
• Cognitive psychology

Selected publications

• Reading speed, visual deficits, and cerebral white matter integrity in veterans with and without mild traumatic brain injury

  Frontiers in Neuroscience · 2026-05-22

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Introduction Since 2001, approximately 17.3% of enlisted personnel have experienced a traumatic brain injury (TBI) according to the United States military. Visual deficits (e.g., convergence insufficiency or pursuit abnormalities) are reported as chronic, persistent symptoms of TBI, which can impact daily activities such as reading, computer work, and driving. Methods In the present study, diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) data and behavioral and survey data related to visual function were analyzed for 63 combat veterans with and without mild TBI (mTBI). We also tested the hypothesis that white matter damage, measured as either decreased fractional anisotropy of white matter or “potholes” evident in the DWI data, would predict visual behaviors (reading speed, smooth pursuit catch-up saccades, and/or convergence insufficiency). Results Our key finding is that scores on the Convergence Insufficiency Symptom Survey (CISS) predicted whether the use of a color overlay would increase reading speed for participants with mTBI, but not for control participants. General linear model analyses found a relationship between smooth pursuit catch-up saccades and the cumulative number of white matter “potholes” found in white matter across the cerebrum. However, the sample size was too small to conclude that these correlations were uniquely related to TBI status. Discussion These findings point toward the importance of additional research to determine exactly how mTBI is associated with reduced reading speed and why altering the color of the page improves performance for individuals with mTBI and convergence insufficiency.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Center-surround processing in psychosis

  Biological Psychiatry Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging · 2026-03-01

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Orientation columns in V1 cannot be detected with fMRI at 0.6 mm resolution

  Journal of Vision · 2025-07-15

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  We collected GE fMRI data with 0.6 mm resolution with the hope of being able to characterize the orientation preference of individual voxels in primary visual cortex (V1) as a function of cortical depth (columns) and location across the cortical surface (pinwheels). Stimuli were large 2 cycle per degree gratings, briefly presented in a 2-interval forced-choice paradigm as observers performed a foveal orientation discrimination task on the portion of the grating that was in a 0.5 degree diameter circle at the center of the grating. The experiment used a block design, presenting 4 12-sec blocks of gratings at each of 8 different (average) orientations in each of 4 task scans during a scanning session. High-quality datasets were acquired from 13 of the 16 individuals scanned. Regression analysis estimated the amplitude of response for each voxel in V1 for each of the 8 different orientations. Visual responses in parafoveal regions of interest (ROIs) defined by an independent localizer were robust: 76% +/- 10% s.d. of the voxels in ROIs defined on the surface and then propagated through the cortical depth were modulated by visual stimuli at the p < 0.001 (uncorrected) level. However, orientation preference of individual voxels was not reliable (e.g., not the same in the first and second half of the scanning session in a split-halves analysis). Average voxel orientation selectivity, computed as 1 minus the circular variance of responses to the 8 orientations, was not significantly different from the null hypothesis. Interestingly, computed orientation selectivity did vary through depth, but only because the inherent contrast-to-noise ratio of fMRI data varies through depth. Also, in spite of the lack of reliable orientation preference or selectivity in individual voxels, a reliable radial bias was evident in the data.

  PublisherDOI

• Perceptual deficits in psychosis: The role of higher level visual areas and prior knowledge

  Journal of Vision · 2025-07-15

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Psychosis leads to the disruption of visual perception, which can be explained by the hierarchical predictive coding model as an impairment of the feedforward and feedback interactions between sensory input and prior knowledge. However, it is essential to have direct evidence from behavior and brain activity to support the model. Our study used an object recognition task with stimuli designed to control low-level features while varying recognizability. Using 7T fMRI, data were collected with 37 controls (CON), 15 bipolar disorder individuals (BP) and 5 relatives (BREL), and 19 people with schizophrenia (SCZ) and 10 relatives (SREL). Stimuli consisted of rough sketches of the outlines and textures of real-world objects formed by controlling the orientation of line segments on a grid. Three image conditions were high recognizability (meaningful - MF), low recognizability (meaningless - ML), and a baseline with randomized line segments. Regions of interest (ROIs) were V1, defined as the intersection of visually responsive voxels clustered in the calcarine sulcus, and post-hoc ROIs in fusiform, parietal, ventral temporal, lateral occipital (LOC), and prefrontal cortex, defined as clusters of voxels showing significant differences in responses to MF and ML stimuli. We found no significant group differences in BOLD responses to MF vs. ML objects in LOC; contrasts between ML objects and random were also generally consistent across groups, suggesting no significant differences in basic grouping processes. In contrast, the intraparietal sulcus and fusiform cortex showed greater BOLD enhancement to MF objects in SREL compared to ML than either SCZ or CON, and BP also showed larger response enhancements by object recognizability. This finding points toward higher visual areas, and differential use of prior knowledge, rather than low- and intermediate-level visual processing (edge detection and grouping) as a source of perceptual differences in psychosis patients and individuals with genetic liability for psychosis.

  PublisherDOI

• Orientation-tuned surround suppression exhibits a unique laminar signature in human primary visual cortex

  bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · 2025-12-12

  articleSenior author

  Abstract Spatial context modifies visual perception by enhancing novel and salient features over spatially redundant features in the underlying neural code of primary visual cortex (V1). Although multiple intracortical pathways contribute to contextual modulation, their specific contributions to different types of contextual modulation are not fully understood. Leveraging the distinct laminar connectivity patterns of feedforward, feedback, and lateral pathways, we used ultra-high-resolution fMRI (7T T 2 *-weighted, 0.6 mm isotropic resolution) to infer their relative contributions to contextual modulation in V1 by analyzing blood-oxygenation-level-dependent (BOLD) signal across cortical depth. Participants viewed sine-wave grating disks embedded in large surround gratings. Segmentation cues were introduced or removed by manipulating the relative phase and orientation of the surround gratings, yielding three contextual conditions and a surround-only condition to measure the effects of context in the absence of feedforward input. Our analysis isolated the effects of orientation-tuned surround suppression (OTSS) from orientation-independent border-induced modulation (BIM). The results show that BOLD laminar profiles differ by modulation type: OTSS was absent from deep layers, whereas BIM was more broadly distributed. We also find that voxels at all depths are driven by spatial context in the absence of feedforward input, which accords with the discovery of contextually-driven neural responses in mammalian V1. These laminar differences likely reflect different proportional contributions of feedback from higher-order visual areas and long-range lateral connections within V1. Our findings help to explicate the contributions of recurrent processing to visual contextual modulation and its impacts on laminar-dependent BOLD fMRI. Significance Statement Our sensory experience requires interpretation: the brain uses both hyper-local and large-scale scene cues to process sensory inputs. In primary visual cortex (V1), this contextual modulation arises from a mixture of intra- and inter-regional neural connections. Because these computations occur at different depths in the cortical gray matter, sub-millimeter resolution fMRI offers an opportunity to quantify the separate contributions of these neural pathways. Using a visual surround suppression paradigm, we measured a distinct depth profile for intra-regional contextual modulation, separating this orientation-tuned signal from other forms of border-induced modulation. This work validates an important new tool for understanding both typical and atypical neural network architectures in the human brain.

  PublisherDOI

• Contrast impacts population heterogeneity of orientation tuning in V1

  Journal of Vision · 2025-07-15

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  The tuning properties of primary visual cortex (V1) display a large degree of heterogeneity across neurons which help support efficient coding of stimulus features. However, the mechanisms supporting heterogeneity in V1 are not well understood. We ask how orientation tuning heterogeneity is impacted by recurrent processing, which is known to shape orientation preference of cells in V1. To this end, we examine 2-photon calcium-imaging data from two anesthetized ferrets that viewed drifting grating stimuli at varying contrasts. We find that in both animals there is substantial variability in orientation selectivity across neurons. Interestingly, the variance of orientation selectivity across the population decreased with increasing contrast, suggesting a relationship between the strength of feedforward inputs and the population heterogeneity of orientation tuning. This trend is not due to contrast-dependent changes in measurement signal-to-noise ratios as a control analysis shows no significant trend in population heterogeneity across contrast when orientation labels are scrambled. We hypothesize that the change in tuning heterogeneity is brought on by a network transition characterized by a shift from feedforward-dominated inputs to a recurrence-dominated regime. To better understand the mechanistic underpinnings of this transition, we are using a stabilized supralinear network (SSN) model to investigate the contributions of recurrent connections in V1 to the population heterogeneity in the tuning properties of neurons. As part of ongoing work, we are testing how spatial and functional tuning properties of recurrent connectivity within the network affect orientation tuning variability across the population in a manner consistent with trends in ferret calcium-imaging data.

  PublisherDOI

• Center-surround processing in psychosis

  medRxiv · 2025-08-19 · 1 citations

  preprintOpen access

  Purpose: People with psychotic psychopathology (PwPP) often experience subtle variations in visual perception, which can be quantified experimentally. In the contrast surround suppression illusion, a central pattern appears to have lower contrast in the presence of a surrounding pattern. PwPP typically show weaker contrast suppression from the surround than controls, but the mechanisms underlying this difference are still poorly understood. Methods: We assessed perceptual and neural surround suppression in 38 controls, 44 first-degree biological relatives of PwPP, and 64 PwPP as part of the Psychosis Human Connectome Project. To better understand neural mechanisms contributing to diminished surround suppression we quantified contrast discrimination thresholds and examined 7 tesla fMRI responses in the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN), primary visual cortex (V1), and lateral occipital complex (LOC). Additionally, we measured the concentration of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA; an inhibitory neurotransmitter) in occipital cortex using 7 T MR spectroscopy. Results: Responses in LOC showed the expected effect of weaker surround suppression in PwPP and relatives versus controls. However, in V1 we found no differences in surround suppression strength between controls, relatives, and PwPP. Additionally, we saw no behavioral evidence for reduced surround suppression in PwPP. Suppression metrics were not significantly correlated with occipital GABA levels or symptom measures. Multi-voxel pattern analysis of V1 fMRI responses revealed a group difference in decoding Surround vs. No Surround, with a trend toward lower accuracy in PwPP vs. controls. Conclusion: Our results suggest subtle differences in visual center-surround processing among people with schizophrenia. Possible explanations for the discrepancy with previous findings include differences in task design and the deployment of spatial attention across groups. Poorer decoding of center vs. surround may suggest neural representations of spatial context in V1 are less reliable in PwPP.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Seeing things in psychosis: Reduced theta power in early neural responses to ambiguous visual stimuli predicts perceptual distortions

  Clinical Neurophysiology · 2025-06-06

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Atypical Use of Visuospatial Context in Psychotic Psychopathology: A Meta-analysis

  Schizophrenia Bulletin · 2024-05-16 · 3 citations

  reviewOpen access

  BACKGROUND AND HYPOTHESIS: Visual perception in people with psychotic disorders is thought to be minimally influenced by surrounding visual elements (ie, visuospatial context). Visuospatial context paradigms have the unique potential to clarify the neural bases of psychotic disorders because the neural mechanisms are well studied in both animal and human models. However, the published literature on the subject is conflicting and heterogeneous. A systematic consolidation and evaluation of the published evidence is needed. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a meta-analysis of 54 articles spanning over 50 years of research. Articles included behavioral, functional magnetic resonance imaging, and electroencephalogram reports of size, contrast, contour, lightness, orientation, and motion perception in schizophrenia (SCZ), bipolar disorder, and subclinical populations. STUDY RESULTS: When pooling across all task types, we found weak evidence of reduced use of visuospatial context in SCZ (Hedges' g = 0.20) and bipolar disorder (g = 0.25). The strongest evidence was observed for altered contrast perception in SCZ (g = 0.73). With respect to subclinical populations, we observed immense heterogeneity in populations of interest and study designs. CONCLUSIONS: We observed surprisingly weak evidence that psychotic disorders are associated with generally reduced use of visuospatial context. Instead, we observed the strongest evidence for a specific alteration in contrast perception. We propose altered feedback to the primary visual cortex as a potential neural mechanism underlying this effect. Moderating factors such as stage and phase of illness may explain some of the heterogeneity we observed in effect sizes; further research is needed to clarify how disease state relates to altered use of visuospatial context.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Surround Suppression of Broadband Images

  bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · 2024-05-15

  preprintOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Visual perception is profoundly sensitive to context. Surround suppression is a well-known visual context effect in which the firing rate of a neuron is suppressed by stimulation of its extra-classical receptive field. The majority of contrast surround suppression studies exclusively use narrowband, sinusoidal grating stimuli; however, it is unclear whether the results produced by such artificial stimuli generalize to real-world, naturalistic visual experiences. To address this issue, we developed a contrast discrimination paradigm that includes both naturalistic broadband textures and narrowband grating textures. All textures were matched for first order image statistics and overall perceptual salience. We observed surround suppression across broadband textures (F(1,6)=19.01, p=.005); however, effect sizes were largest for narrowband, sinusoidal gratings (Cohen's d=1.83). Among the three broadband texture types, we observed strongest suppression for the texture with a clear dominant orientation (stratified: Cohen's d=1.29), while the textures with a more even distribution of orientation information produced weaker suppression (fibrous: Cohen's d=0.63; braided: Cohen's d=0.65). We also observed an effect of texture identity on the slope of psychometric functions (F(1.98,11.9)=7.29, p=0.01), primarily driven by smaller slopes for the texture with the most uniform distribution of orientations. Our results suggest that well-known contextual modulation effects only partially generalize to more ecologically valid stimuli.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• Depth-dependent fMRI: feasibility and utility

  NIH · $418k · 2016–2019

• NIH Grant R01EY015261

  NIH · $2.2M · 2012

• Neurons, Vessels and Voxels: Multi-modal Imaging of Layer Specific Signals

  NIH · $5.0M · 2016–2022

• Histology

  NIH · $2.1M · 2022

• NIH Grant R21NS075525

  NIH · $394k · 2015

Frequent coauthors

• Scott R. Sponheim

  University of Minnesota

  109 shared

• Kâmil Uǧurbil

  58 shared

• Michael‐Paul Schallmo

  University of Minnesota

  46 shared

• Kimberly B. Weldon

  University of Minnesota

  44 shared

• Essa Yacoub

  Resonance Research (United States)

  37 shared

• Philip Burton

  University of Minnesota

  32 shared

• Andrea Grant

  Resonance Research (United States)

  31 shared

• Steen Moeller

  29 shared

Education

• Post-doctoral fellow, Center for Neural Science

  New York University

  2005

• Ph.D., Neuroscience

  University of Minnesota System

  2003

• B.S., Physics

  Michigan State University

  1995

Awards & honors

• Career Readiness Teaching Award, University of Minnesota Col…
• Horace T. Morse-University of Minnesota Alumni Association A…
• University of Minnesota President’s Award for Outstanding Se…