Journal of Eye Movement Research

20 pages, 4931 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Repeated Web Page Visits and the Scanpath Theory: A Recurrent Pattern Detection Approach

by Michael Burmester and Marcus Mast

J. Eye Mov. Res. 2009, 3(4), 1-20; https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.3.4.5 - 20 Oct 2010

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 85

This paper investigates the eye movement sequences of users visiting web pages repeatedly. We are interested in potential habituation due to repeated exposure. The scanpath theory posits that every person learns an idiosyncratic gaze sequence on first exposure to a stimulus and re-applies it on subsequent exposures. Josephson and Holmes (2002) tested the applicability of this hypothesis to web page revisitation but results were inconclusive. With a recurrent temporal pattern detection technique, we examine additional aspects and expose scanpaths. Results do not suggest direct applicability of the scanpath theory. While repetitive scan patterns occurred and were individually distinctive, their occurrence was variable, there were often several different patterns per person, and patterns were not primarily formed on the first exposure. However, extensive patterning occurred for some participants yet not for others which deserves further study into its determinants. Full article

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16 pages, 432 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of a Temporary Absence of Target Velocity Information on Visual Tracking

by Patricia M. Cisarik, Sanjeev Kasthurirangan, Frank E. Visco, Jr., Harold E. Bedell, Scott B. Stevenson and Avesh Raghunandan

J. Eye Mov. Res. 2009, 3(4), 1-16; https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.3.4.4 - 18 Oct 2010

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 59

Abstract

Experiments with the Rashbass ‘step-ramp’ paradigm have revealed that the initial catchup saccade that occurs near pursuit onset uses target velocity as well as position information in its programming. Information about both position and motion also influences smooth pursuit. To investigate the timing of velocity sampling near the initiation of saccades and smooth pursuit, we analyzed the eye movements made in nine ‘step-ramp’ conditions, produced by combining –2, 0 and +2 deg steps with –8, 0 and +8 deg/s ramps. Each trial had either no temporal gap or a 50-ms gap during which the laser target was extinguished, beginning 25, 50, 75 or 100 ms after the step. Six subjects repeated each of the resulting 45 conditions 25 times. With no temporal gap, saccades were larger in the ‘step-ramp-away’ than the ‘step-only’ condition, confirming that saccade programming incorporates ramp velocity information. A temporal gap had no effect on the accuracy of saccades on ‘step-only’ trials, but often caused undershoots in ‘step-ramp’ trials. A 50-ms gap within the first 100 ms also increased the latency of the initial saccade. Although initial pursuit velocity was unaffected by a temporal gap, a gap that started at 25 ms reliably delayed pursuit onset for ramp motion of the target toward the fovea. Later gaps had a minimal effect on initial pursuit latency. The similar timing of the temporal gaps in target motion information that affect the initiation of saccades and pursuit provides further behavioral evidence that the two types of eye movements share pre-motor neural mechanisms. Full article

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10 pages, 582 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Orienting During Gaze Guidance in a Letter-Identification Task

by Christoph Rasche and Karl Gegenfurtner

J. Eye Mov. Res. 2009, 3(4), 1-10; https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.3.4.3 - 15 Oct 2010

Viewed by 67

Abstract

The idea of gaze guidance is to lead a viewer’s gaze through a visual display in order to facilitate the viewer’s search for specific information in a least-obtrusive manner. This study investigates saccadic orienting when a viewer is guided in a fast-paced, low-contrast letter identification task. Despite the task’s difficulty and although guiding cues were ad-justed to gaze eccentricity, observers preferred attentional over saccadic shifts to obtain a letter identification judgment; and if a saccade was carried out its saccadic constant error was 50%. From those results we derive a number of design recommendations for the process of gaze guidance. Full article

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13 pages, 2068 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Different Judgments About Visual Textures Invoke Different Eye Movement Patterns

by Richard H.A.H. Jacobs, Remco Renken, Stefan Thumfart and Frans W. Cornelissen

J. Eye Mov. Res. 2009, 3(4), 1-13; https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.3.4.2 - 15 Oct 2010

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 59

Abstract

Top-down influences on the guidance of the eyes are generally modeled as modulating influences on bottom-up salience maps. Interested in task-driven influences on how, rather than where, the eyes are guided, we expected differences in eye movement parameters accompanying beauty and roughness judgments about visual textures. Participants judged textures for beauty and roughness, while their gaze-behavior was recorded. Eye movement parameters differed between the judgments, showing task effects on how people look at images. Similarity in the spatial distribution of attention suggests that differences in the guidance of attention are non-spatial, possibly feature-based. During the beauty judgment, participants fixated on patches that were richer in color information, further supporting the idea that differences in the guidance of attention are feature-based. A finding of shorter fixation durations during beauty judgments may indicate that extraction of the relevant features is easier during this judgment. This finding is consistent with a more ambient scanning mode during this judgment. The differences in eye movement parameters during different judgments about highly repetitive stimuli highlight the need for models of eye guidance to go beyond salience maps, to include the temporal dynamics of eye guidance. Full article

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20 pages, 2723 KiB

Open AccessArticle

What Determines the Direction of Microsaccades?

by Frouke Hermens and Robin Walker

J. Eye Mov. Res. 2009, 3(4), 1-20; https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.3.4.1 - 24 Sep 2010

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 99

Abstract

During visual fixation, our eyes are not entirely still. Instead, small eye movements, such as microsaccades, can be observed. We here investigate what determines the direction and frequency of these microsaccades, as this information might help to clarifywhat purpose they serve. The relative contribution of three possible factorswas examined: (1) the orienting of covert attention, (2) the spatial distribution of possible target locations, and (3) whether monocular or binocular microsaccades are considered. The orienting of covert attention and the distribution of possible target locations had a relatively weak effect on microsaccade rates and directions. In contrast, the classification of microsaccades as binocular (occurring in both eyes simultaneously) or monocular (observed in one eye only) strongly affected both the rate and the direction of microsaccades. The results are discussed in the context of existing findings. Full article

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J. Eye Mov. Res., Volume 3, Issue 4 (October 2009) – 5 articles

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