All EyeLink Publications
All 12,000+ peer-reviewed EyeLink research publications up until 2023 (with some early 2024s) are listed below by year. You can search the publications library using keywords such as Visual Search, Smooth Pursuit, Parkinson’s, etc. You can also search for individual author names. Eye-tracking studies grouped by research area can be found on the solutions pages. If we missed any EyeLink eye-tracking papers, please email us!
2024 |
Inbal Ziv; Inbar Avni; Ilan Dinstein; Gal Meiri; Yoram S. Bonneh Oculomotor randomness is higher in autistic children and increases with the severity of symptoms Journal Article In: Autism Research, pp. 1–17, 2024. @article{Ziv2024, A variety of studies have suggested that at least some children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) view the world differently. Differences in gaze patterns as measured by eye tracking have been demonstrated during visual exploration of images and natural viewing of movies with social content. Here we analyzed the temporal randomness of saccades and blinks during natural viewing of movies, inspired by a recent measure of “randomness” applied to micro-movements of the hand and head in ASD (Torres et al., 2013; Torres & Denisova, 2016). We analyzed a large eye-tracking dataset of 189 ASD and 41 typically developing (TD) children (1–11 years old) who watched three movie clips with social content, each repeated twice. We found that oculomotor measures of randomness, obtained from gamma parameters of inter-saccade intervals (ISI) and blink duration distributions, were significantly higher in the ASD group compared with the TD group and were correlated with the ADOS comparison score, reflecting increased “randomness” in more severe cases. Moreover, these measures of randomness decreased with age, as well as with higher cognitive scores in both groups and were consistent across repeated viewing of each movie clip. Highly “random” eye movements in ASD children could be associated with high “neural variability” or noise, poor sensory-motor control, or weak engagement with the movies. These findings could contribute to the future development of oculomotor biomarkers as part of an integrative diagnostic tool for ASD. |
Hong Zhou; Luhua Wei; Yanyan Jiang; Xia Wang; Yunchuang Sun; Fan Li; Jing Chen; Wei Sun; Lin Zhang; Guiping Zhao; Zhaoxia Wang Abnormal Ocular Movement in the Early Stage of Multiple-System Atrophy With Predominant Parkinsonism Distinct From Parkinson's Disease Journal Article In: Journal of Clinical Neurology, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 37–45, 2024. @article{Zhou2024, Background and Purpose The eye-movement examination can be applied as a noninvasive method to identify multiple-system atrophy (MSA). Few studies have investigated eye movements during the early stage of MSA with predominant parkinsonism (MSA-P). We aimed to determine the characteristic oculomotor changes in the early stage of MSA-P. Methods We retrospectively selected 17 patients with MSA-P and 40 with Parkinson's disease (PD) with disease durations of less than 2 years, and 40 age-matched healthy controls (HCs). Oculomotor performance in the horizontal direction was measured in detail using videonystagmography. Results We found that the proportions of patients with MSA-P and PD exhibiting abnormal eye movements were 82.4% and 77.5%, respectively, which were significantly higher than that in the HCs (47.5%, p<0.05). Compared with HCs, patients with MSA-P presented significantly higher abnormal proportions of fixation and gaze-holding (17.6% vs. 0%), without-fixation (47.1% vs. 0%), prolonged latency in reflexive saccades (29.4% vs. 5.0%), memory-guided saccades (93.3% vs. 10.0%), and catch-up saccades in smooth-pursuit movement (SPM, 41.2% vs. 0) (all p<0.05). Compared with those with PD, patients with MSA-P presented a signifi- cantly higher proportion of catch-up saccades in SPM (41.2% vs. 2.5%, p<0.001). Conclusions MSA-P presented the characteristic of catch-up saccades in SPM in the early stage, which may provide some value in differentiating MSA-P from PD. |
Mengdie Zhai; Hongxiao Wu; Yajie Wang; Yu Liao; Wenfeng Feng Sound reduces saccadic chronostasis illusion Journal Article In: Vision Research, vol. 215, pp. 1–11, 2024. @article{Zhai2024, The saccadic chronostasis illusion refers to the duration overestimation of the first visual stimulation after saccadic eye movement, which is also known as “stopped clock illusion.” The present study investigated whether saccadic chronostasis would be observed in the auditory modality and whether the saccade-induced time dilation in the visual modality would be reduced by a synchronously presented sound. In each trial, a unisensory visual stimulus, unisensory sound, or bimodal audio-visual stimulus with a duration of 200–800 ms (probe stimulus) was presented at the saccade target location and temporally around the offset of the saccade, followed by a unisensory visual or auditory standard stimulus for a fixed 500 ms. Participants were required to identify which of the two stimuli (probe or standard) presented in the target modality (visual or auditory) was perceived as longer. The results showed that no saccadic chronostasis was observed in the auditory modality, regardless of whether the sound was presented alone or synchronously accompanied by a visual stimulus. Interestingly, the magnitude of the saccadic chronostasis illusion was reduced by the synchronously presented sound. Moreover, the combined effect of the saccade and sound on visual time perception fits well with the standard scalar model, and the weight of the cross-modal effect was higher than that of saccadic visual time dilation. These results suggest that sound dominates vision in time processing during saccades and linearly modulates saccadic chronostasis, which follows the Scalar Expectancy Theory. |
Yordanka Zafirova; Anna Bognár; Rufin Vogels Configuration-sensitive face-body interactions in primate visual cortex Journal Article In: Progress in Neurobiology, vol. 232, pp. 1–16, 2024. @article{Zafirova2024, Traditionally, the neural processing of faces and bodies is studied separately, although they are encountered together, as parts of an agent. Despite its social importance, it is poorly understood how faces and bodies interact, particularly at the single-neuron level. Here, we examined the interaction between faces and bodies in the macaque inferior temporal (IT) cortex, targeting an fMRI-defined patch. We recorded responses of neurons to monkey images in which the face was in its natural location (natural face-body configuration), or in which the face was mislocated with respect to the upper body (unnatural face-body configuration). On average, the neurons did not respond stronger to the natural face-body configurations compared to the summed responses to their faces and bodies, presented in isolation. However, the neurons responded stronger to the natural compared to the unnatural face-body configurations. This configuration effect was present for face- and monkey-centered images, did not depend on local feature differences between configurations, and was present when the face was replaced by a small object. The face-body interaction rules differed between natural and unnatural configurations. In sum, we show for the first time that single IT neurons process faces and bodies in a configuration-specific manner, preferring natural face-body configurations. |
Lei Yuan; Miriam Novack; David Uttal; Steven Franconeri Language systematizes attention: How relational language enhances relational representation by guiding attention Journal Article In: Cognition, vol. 243, pp. 1–14, 2024. @article{Yuan2024, Language can affect cognition, but through what mechanism? Substantial past research has focused on how labeling can elicit categorical representation during online processing. We focus here on a particularly powerful type of language-relational language-and show that relational language can enhance relational representation in children through an embodied attention mechanism. Four-year-old children were given a color-location conjunction task, in which they were asked to encode a two-color square, split either vertically or horizontally (e.g., red on the left, blue on the right), and later recall the same configuration from its mirror reflection. During the encoding phase, children in the experimental condition heard relational language (e.g., "Red is on the left of blue"), while those in the control condition heard generic non-relational language (e.g., "Look at this one, look at it closely"). At recall, children in the experimental condition were more successful at choosing the correct relational representation between the two colors compared to the control group. Moreover, they exhibited different attention patterns as predicted by the attention shift account of relational representation (Franconeri et al., 2012). To test the sustained effect of language and the role of attention, during the second half of the study, the experimental condition was given generic non-relational language. There was a sustained advantage in the experimental condition for both behavioral accuracies and signature attention patterns. Overall, our findings suggest that relational language enhances relational representation by guiding learners' attention, and this facilitative effect persists over time even in the absence of language. Implications for the mechanism of how relational language can enhance the learning of relational systems (e.g., mathematics, spatial cognition) by guiding attention will be discussed. |
Lei Wang; Xufeng Zhou; Jie Yang; Fu Zeng; Shuzhen Zuo; Makoto Kusunoki; Huimin Wang; Yong-di Zhou; Aihua Chen; Sze Chai Kwok Mixed coding of content-temporal detail by dorsomedial posterior parietal neurons Journal Article In: Journal of Neuroscience, vol. 44, no. 3, pp. 1–16, 2024. @article{Wang2024, The dorsomedial posterior parietal cortex (dmPPC) is part of a higher-cognition network implicated in elaborate processes under- pinning memory formation, recollection, episode reconstruction, and temporal information processing. Neural coding for complex episodic processing is however under-documented. Here, we recorded extracellular neural activities from three male rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) and revealed a set of neural codes of “neuroethogram” in the primate parietal cortex. Analyzing neural responses in macaque dmPPC to naturalistic videos, we discovered several groups of neurons that are sensitive to different categories of ethogram items, low-level sensory features, and saccadic eye movement. We also discovered that the processing of category and feature information by these neurons is sustained by the accumulation of temporal information over a long timescale of up to 30 s, corroborating its reported long temporal receptive windows. We performed an additional behavioral experiment with additional two male rhesus macaques and found that saccade-related activities could not account for the mixed neuronal responses elicited by the video stimuli. We further observed monkeys' scan paths and gaze consistency are modulated by video content. Taken altogether, these neural findings explain how dmPPC weaves fabrics of ongoing experiences together in real time. The high dimensionality of neural representations should motivate us to shift the focus of attention from pure selectivity neurons to mixed selectivity neurons, especially in increasingly complex naturalistic task designs. |
Inês S. Veríssimo; Zachary Nudelman; Christian N. L. Olivers Does crowding predict conjunction search? An individual differences approach Journal Article In: Vision Research, vol. 216, pp. 1–13, 2024. @article{Verissimo2024, Searching for objects in the visual environment is an integral part of human behavior. Most of the information used during such visual search comes from the periphery of our vision, and understanding the basic mechanisms of search therefore requires taking into account the inherent limitations of peripheral vision. Our previous work using an individual differences approach has shown that one of the major factors limiting peripheral vision (crowding) is predictive of single feature search, as reflected in response time and eye movement measures. Here we extended this work, by testing the relationship between crowding and visual search in a conjunction-search paradigm. Given that conjunction search involves more fine-grained discrimination and more serial behavior, we predicted it would be strongly affected by crowding. We tested sixty participants with regard to their sensitivity to both orientation and color-based crowding (as measured by critical spacing) and their efficiency in searching for a color/orientation conjunction (as indicated by manual response times and eye movements). While the correlations between the different crowding tasks were high, the correlations between the different crowding measures and search performance were relatively modest, and no higher than those previously observed for single-feature search. Instead, observers showed very strong color selectivity during search. The results suggest that conjunction search behavior relies more on top-down guidance (here by color) and is therefore relatively less determined by individual differences in sensory limitations as caused by crowding. |
Monica Vanoncini; Stefanie Hoehl; Birgit Elsner; Sebastian Wallot; Natalie Boll-Avetisyan; Ezgi Kayhan Mother-infant social gaze dynamics relate to infant brain activity and word segmentation Journal Article In: Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, vol. 65, pp. 1–8, 2024. @article{Vanoncini2024, The ‘social brain', consisting of areas sensitive to social information, supposedly gates the mechanisms involved in human language learning. Early preverbal interactions are guided by ostensive signals, such as gaze patterns, which are coordinated across body, brain, and environment. However, little is known about how the infant brain processes social gaze in naturalistic interactions and how this relates to infant language development. During free-play of 9-month-olds with their mothers, we recorded hemodynamic cortical activity of ´social brain` areas (prefrontal cortex, temporo-parietal junctions) via fNIRS, and micro-coded mother's and infant's social gaze. Infants' speech processing was assessed with a word segmentation task. Using joint recurrence quantification analysis, we examined the connection between infants' ´social brain` activity and the temporal dynamics of social gaze at intrapersonal (i.e., infant's coordination, maternal coordination) and interpersonal (i.e., dyadic coupling) levels. Regression modeling revealed that intrapersonal dynamics in maternal social gaze (but not infant's coordination or dyadic coupling) coordinated significantly with infant's cortical activity. Moreover, recurrence quantification analysis revealed that intrapersonal maternal social gaze dynamics (in terms of entropy) were the best predictor of infants' word segmentation. The findings support the importance of social interaction in language development, particularly highlighting maternal social gaze dynamics. |
Jacob C. Tanner; Joshua Faskowitz; Lisa Byrge; Daniel P. Kennedy; Olaf Sporns; Richard F. Betzel Synchronous high-amplitude co-fluctuations of functional brain networks during movie-watching Journal Article In: Imaging Neuroscience, vol. 1, pp. 1–21, 2024. @article{Tanner2024, Recent studies have shown that functional connectivity can be decomposed into its exact frame- wise contributions, revealing short- lived, infrequent, and high- amplitude time points referred to as “events.” Events contribute disproportionately to the time- averaged connectivity pattern, improve identifiability and brain- behavior associations, and differences in their expression have been linked to endogenous hormonal fluctuations and autism. Here, we explore the characteristics of events while subjects watch movies. Using two independently acquired imaging datasets in which participants passively watched movies, we find that events synchronize across individuals and based on the level of synchronization, can be categorized into three distinct classes: those that synchronize at the boundaries between movies, those that synchronize during movies, and those that do not synchronize at all. We find that boundary events, compared to the other categories, exhibit greater amplitude, distinct co- fluctuation patterns, and temporal propagation. We show that underlying boundary events 1 is a specific mode of co-fluctuation involving the activation of control and salience systems alongside the deactivation of visual systems. Events that synchronize during the movie, on the other hand, display a pattern of co-fluctuation that is time- locked to the movie stimulus. Finally, we found that subjects' time-varying brain networks are most similar to one another during these synchronous events. |
Reiji Tanaka; Kei Watanabe; Takafumi Suzuki; Kae Nakamura; Masaharu Yasuda; Hiroshi Ban; Ken Okada; Shigeru Kitazawa An easy-to-implement, non-invasive head restraint method for monkey fMRI Journal Article In: NeuroImage, vol. 285, pp. 1–12, 2024. @article{Tanaka2024, Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in behaving monkeys has a strong potential to bridge the gap between human neuroimaging and primate neurophysiology. In monkey fMRI, to restrain head movements, researchers usually surgically implant a plastic head-post on the skull. Although time-proven to be effective, this technique could create burdens for animals, including a risk of infection and discomfort. Furthermore, the presence of extraneous objects on the skull, such as bone screws and dental cement, adversely affects signals near the cortical surface. These side effects are undesirable in terms of both the practical aspect of efficient data collection and the spirit of “refinement” from the 3R's. Here, we demonstrate that a completely non-invasive fMRI scan in awake monkeys is possible by using a plastic head mask made to fit the skull of individual animals. In all of the three monkeys tested, longitudinal, quantitative assessment of head movements showed that the plastic mask has effectively suppressed head movements, and we were able to obtain reliable retinotopic BOLD signals in a standard retinotopic mapping task. The present, easy-to-make plastic mask has a strong potential to simplify fMRI experiments in awake monkeys, while giving data that is as good as or even better quality than that obtained with the conventional head-post method. |
Teresa Sousa; Alexandre Sayal; João V. Duarte; Gabriel N. Costa; Miguel Castelo-Branco A human cortical adaptive mutual inhibition circuit underlying competition for perceptual decision and repetition suppression reversal Journal Article In: NeuroImage, vol. 285, pp. 1–10, 2024. @article{Sousa2024, A model based on inhibitory coupling has been proposed to explain perceptual oscillations. This 'adapting reciprocal inhibition' model postulates that it is the strength of inhibitory coupling that determines the fate of competition between percepts. Here, we used an fMRI-based adaptation technique to reveal the influence of neighboring neuronal populations, such as reciprocal inhibition, in motion-selective hMT+/V5. If reciprocal inhibition exists in this region, the following predictions should hold: 1. stimulus-driven response would not simply decrease, as predicted by simple repetition-suppression of neuronal populations, but instead, increase due to the activity from adjacent populations; 2. perceptual decision involving competing representations, should reflect decreased reciprocal inhibition by adaptation; 3. neural activity for the competing percept should also later on increase upon adaptation. Our results confirm these three predictions, showing that a model of perceptual decision based on adapting reciprocal inhibition holds true. Finally, they also show that the net effect of the well-known repetition suppression phenomenon can be reversed by this mechanism. |
Adi Shechter; Sivan Medina; David L. Share; Amit Yashar In: Cortex, vol. 171, pp. 319–329, 2024. @article{Shechter2024, Peripheral letter recognition is fundamentally limited not by the visibility of letters but by the spacing between them, i.e., ‘crowding'. Crowding imposes a significant constraint on reading, however, the interplay between crowding and reading is not fully understood. Using a letter recognition task in varying display conditions, we investigated the effects of lexicality (words versus pseudowords), visual hemifield, and transitional letter probability (bigram/trigram frequency) among skilled readers (N = 14. and N = 13) in Hebrew – a script read from right to left. We observed two language-universal effects: a lexicality effect and a right hemifield (left hemisphere) advantage, as well as a strong language-specific effect – a left bigram advantage stemming from the right-to-left reading direction of Hebrew. The latter finding suggests that transitional probabilities are essential for parafoveal letter recognition. The results reveal that script-specific contextual information such as letter combination probabilities is used to accurately identify crowded letters. |
Eser Sendesen; Didem Turkyilmaz Listening handicap in tinnitus patients by controlling extended high frequencies - Effort or fatigue? Journal Article In: Auris Nasus Larynx, vol. 51, no. 1, pp. 198–205, 2024. @article{Sendesen2024, Objective: In previous studies, the results regarding the presence of listening effort or fatigue in tinnitus patients were inconsistent. The reason for this inconsistency could be that extended high frequencies, which can cause listening handicap, were not considered. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the listening skills in tinnitus patients by matching the hearing thresholds at all frequencies, including the extended high frequency. Methods: Eighteen chronic tinnitus patients and thirty matched healthy controls having normal pure-tone average with symmetrical hearing thresholds was included. Subjects were evaluated with 0.125-20 kHz pure-tone audiometry, Montreal cognitive assessment test (MoCA), Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI), Matrix Test, Pupillometry. Results: Pupil dilatation in the 'coding' phase of the sentence presented in tinnitus patients was less than in the control group (p<0.05). There was no difference between the groups for Matrix test scores (p> 0.05) Also, there was no statistically significant correlation between THI and Pupillometry components nor between MoCA (p>0.05). Conclusion: The results were interpreted for potential listening fatigue in tinnitus patients. Considering the possible listening handicap in tinnitus patients, reducing the listening difficulties especially in noisy environments, can be added to the goals of tinnitus therapy protocols. |
Amanda H. Seidl; Michelle Indarjit; Arielle Borovsky Touch to learn: Multisensory input supports word learning and processing Journal Article In: Developmental Science, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 1–20, 2024. @article{Seidl2024, Infants experience language in rich multisensory environments. For example, they may first be exposed to the word applesauce while touching, tasting, smelling, and seeing applesauce. In three experiments using different methods we asked whether the number of distinct senses linked with the semantic features of objects would impact word recognition and learning. Specifically, in Experiment 1 we asked whether words linked with more multisensory experiences were learned earlier than words linked fewer multisensory experiences. In Experiment 2, we asked whether 2-year-olds' known words linked with more multisensory experiences were better recognized than those linked with fewer. Finally, in Experiment 3, we taught 2-year-olds labels for novel objects that were linked with either just visual or visual and tactile experiences and asked whether this impacted their ability to learn the new label-to-object mappings. Results converge to support an account in which richer multisensory experiences better support word learning. We discuss two pathways through which rich multisensory experiences might support word learning. |
Michela Redolfi; Chiara Melloni Processing adjectives in development: Evidence from eye-tracking Journal Article In: Journal of Child Language, pp. 1–24, 2024. @article{Redolfi2024, Combining adjective meaning with the modified noun is particularly challenging for children under three years. Previous research suggests that in processing noun-adjective phrases children may over-rely on noun information, delaying or omitting adjective interpretation. However, the question of whether this difficulty is modulated by semantic differences among (subsective) adjectives is underinvestigated. A visual-world experiment explores how Italian-learning children (N=38, 2;4–5;3) process noun-adjective phrases and whether their processing strategies adapt based on the adjective class. Our investigation substantiates the proficient integration of noun and adjective semantics by children. Nevertheless, alligning with previous research, a notable asymmetry is evident in the interpretation of nouns and adjectives, the latter being integrated more slowly. Remarkably, by testing toddlers across a wide age range, we observe a developmental trajectory in processing, supporting a continuity approach to children's development. Moreover, we reveal that children exhibit sensitivity to the distinct interpretations associated with each subsective adjective. |
Claudio M. Privitera; Sean Noah; Thom Carney; Stanley A. Klein; Agatha Lenartowicz; Stephen P. Hinshaw; James T. McCracken; Joel T. Nigg; Sarah L. Karalunas; Rory C. Reid; Mercedes T. Oliva; Samantha S. Betts; Gregory V. Simpson Pupillary dilations in a Target/Distractor visual task paradigm and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) Journal Article In: Neuroscience Letters, vol. 818, pp. 1–6, 2024. @article{Privitera2024, ADHD is a neurocognitive disorder characterized by attention difficulties, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, often persisting into adulthood with substantial personal and societal consequences. Despite the importance of neurophysiological assessment and treatment monitoring tests, their availability outside of research settings remains limited. Cognitive neuroscience investigations have identified distinct components associated with ADHD, including deficits in sustained attention, inefficient enhancement of attended Targets, and altered suppression of ignored Distractors. In this study, we examined pupil activity in control and ADHD subjects during a sustained visual attention task specifically designed to evaluate the mechanisms underlying Target enhancement and Distractor suppression. Our findings revealed some distinguishing factors between the two groups which we discuss in light of their neurobiological implications. |
Juan D. Guevara Pinto; Megan H. Papesh High target prevalence may reduce the spread of attention during search tasks Journal Article In: Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, vol. 86, no. 1, pp. 62–83, 2024. @article{Pinto2024, Target prevalence influences many cognitive processes during visual search, including target detection, search efficiency, and item processing. The present research investigated whether target prevalence may also impact the spread of attention during search. Relative to low-prevalence searches, high-prevalence searches typically yield higher fixation counts, particularly during target-absent trials. This may emerge because the attention spread around each fixation may be smaller for high than low prevalence searches. To test this, observers searched for targets within object arrays in Experiments 1 (free-viewing) and 2 (gaze-contingent viewing). In Experiment 3, observers searched for targets in a Rapid Serial Visual Presentation (RSVP) stream at the center of the display while simultaneously processing occasional peripheral objects. Experiment 1 used fixation patterns to estimate attentional spread, and revealed that attention was narrowed during high, relative to low, prevalence searches. This effect was weakened during gaze-contingent search (Experiment 2) but emerged again when eye movements were unnecessary in RSVP search (Experiment 3). These results suggest that, although task demands impact how attention is allocated across displays, attention may also narrow when searching for frequent targets. |
Arthur Pabst; Zoé Bollen; Nicolas Masson; Mado Gautier; Christophe Geus; Pierre Maurage Altered attentional processing of facial expression features in severe alcohol use disorder: An eye-tracking study. Journal Article In: Journal of Psychopathology and Clinical Science, vol. 133, no. 1, pp. 103–114, 2024. @article{Pabst2024, Social cognition impairments, and notably emotional facial expression (EFE) recognition difficulties, as well as their functional and clinical correlates, are increasingly documented in severe alcohol use disorder (SAUD). However, insights into their underlying mechanisms are lacking. Here, we tested if SAUD was associated with alterations in the attentional processing of EFEs. In a preregistered study, 40 patients with SAUD and 40 healthy controls (HCs) had to identify the emotional expression conveyed by faces while having their gaze recorded by an eye-tracker. We assessed indices of initial (first fixation locations) and later (number of fixations and dwell-time) attention with reference to regions of interest corresponding to the eyes, mouth, and nose, which carry key information for EFE recognition. We centrally found that patients had less first fixations to key facial features in general, as well as less fixations and dwell time to the eyes specifically, relative to the rest of the face, compared to controls. These effects were invariant across emotional expressions. Additional exploratory analyses revealed that patients with SAUD had a less structured viewing pattern than controls. These results offer novel, direct, evidence that patients with SAUD's socioaffective difficulties already emerge at the facial attentional pro- cessing stage, along with precisions regarding the nature and generalizability of the effects. Potential implications for the mechanistic conceptualization and treatment of social cognition difficulties in SAUD are discussed. |
Kateryna Melnyk; Lee Friedman; Oleg V. Komogortsev What can entropy metrics tell us about the characteristics of ocular fixation trajectories? Journal Article In: PloS ONE, vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 1–45, 2024. @article{Melnyk2024, In this study, we provide a detailed analysis of entropy measures calculated for fixation eye movement trajectories from the three different datasets. We employed six key metrics (Fuzzy, Increment, Sample, Gridded Distribution, Phase, and Spectral Entropies). We calculate these six metrics on three sets of fixations: (1) fixations from the GazeCom dataset, (2) fixations from what we refer to as the "Lund" dataset, and (3) fixations from our own research laboratory ("OK Lab" dataset). For each entropy measure, for each dataset, we closely examined the 36 fixations with the highest entropy and the 36 fixations with the lowest entropy. From this, it was clear that the nature of the information from our entropy metrics depended on which dataset was evaluated. These entropy metrics found various types of misclassified fixations in the GazeCom dataset. Two entropy metrics also detected fixation with substantial linear drift. For the Lund dataset, the only finding was that low spectral entropy was associated with what we call "bumpy" fixations. These are fixations with low-frequency oscillations. For the OK Lab dataset, three entropies found fixations with high-frequency noise which probably represent ocular microtremor. In this dataset, one entropy found fixations with linear drift. The between-dataset results are discussed in terms of the number of fixations in each dataset, the different eye movement stimuli employed, and the method of eye movement classification. |
Natalia Melnik; Stefan Pollmann Saccadic re-referencing training with gaze-contingent FRL-'fixation': Effects of scotoma type and size adaptation Journal Article In: Vision Research, vol. 214, no. 214, pp. 1–11, 2024. @article{Melnik2024, Foveal vision loss makes the fovea as saccadic reference point maladaptive. Training programs have been proposed that shift the saccadic reference point from the fovea to an extrafoveal location, just outside the area of vision loss. We used a visual search task to train normal-sighted participants to fixate target items with a predetermined 'forced retinal location' (FRL) adjacent to a simulated central scotoma. We found that training was comparatively successful for scotomata that had either a sharp or blurry demarcation from the background. Completing the task with sharp-edged scotoma resulted in overall higher training gains. Training with blurry-edged scotoma, however, yielded overall better results when scotoma size was increased after training and participants needed to adapt to a more eccentric FRL, as may be necessary in patients with progressive degenerative eye diseases. |
Siobhan M. McAteer; Anthony McGregor; Daniel T. Smith Precision in spatial working memory examined with mouse pointing Journal Article In: Vision Research, vol. 215, pp. 1–10, 2024. @article{McAteer2024, ABSTRACT memory (VSWM) is limited. However, there is continued debate surrounding the nature of this capacity limitation. The resource model (Bays et al., 2009) proposes that VSWM capacity is limited by the precision with which visuospatial features can be retained. In one of the few studies of spatial working memory, Schneegans and Bays (2016) report that memory guided pointing responses show a monotonic decrease in precision as set size increases, consistent with resource models. Here we report two conceptual replications of this study that use mouse responses rather than pointing responses. Overall results are consistent with the resource model, as there was an exponential increase in localisation error and monotonic increases in the probability of misbinding and guessing with increases in set size. However, an unexpected result of Experiment One was that, unlike Schneegans and Bays (2016), imprecision did not increase between set sizes of 2 and 8. Experiment Two replicated this effect and ruled out the possibility that the invariance of imprecision at set sizes greater than 2 was a product of oculomotor strategies during recall. We speculate that differences in imprecision are related to additional visuomotor transformations required for memory-guided mouse localisation compared to memory-guided manual pointing localisation. These data demonstrate the importance of consid- ering the nature of the response modality when interpreting VSWM data. 1. |
Siqi Lyu; Jung-Yueh Tu; Chien-Jer Charles Lin Structural position affects topic transition: An eye tracking study Journal Article In: Language and Linguistics, vol. 25, no. 1, pp. 56–79, 2024. @article{Lyu2024, In an eye-tracking study, we used Chinese double-subject construction [NPa NPb PREDICATE] (e.g., [nage jiezhi]NPa [sheji]NPb [hen tebie]PREDICATE ‘that ring design very special') in a concessive construction like suiran…dan… ‘although…but…' to investigate how the syntactic position of the topic NP (i.e., that ring) affects the comprehension of topic transition in the subsequent clause. We contrasted topics located at a higher pre-connective topic position (e.g., that ring although) and those located at a post-connective subject position (e.g., although that ring). Topic transition was manipulated as either using a subtopic (e.g., workmanship of that ring) or a new topic (e.g., the wedding dress) in the second clause of concession. We found a main effect of topic transition in a batch ofeye-movement measures showing that subtopic transition was preferred over new-topic transition. More importantly, we found interactions on total reading time and total fixations at the topic-suiran region and on total fixations at the post-critical region, with post hoc tests revealing a larger cost of topic transition in the high-topic condition than in the low-topic condition. The results suggest that when a topic NP is located at a higher topic position (i.e., above the connective), it binds the topics of both clauses and induces greater cost when the topics do not form a consistent chain. When the topic NP is located at a local (i.e., post-connective) position, the processing of topic shift or resolution of topic conflict in the second clause is less costly because the second topic is not syntactically bound by the higher topic. Together, the results support a prominent status of the before-connective position in Chinese discourse. Furthermore, they indicate that syntactically induced topicality constrains the processing of topic transition in the subsequent discourse. |
Simon P. Liversedge; Henri Olkoniemi; Chuanli Zang; Xin Li; Guoli Yan; Xuejun Bai; Jukka Hyönä Universality in eye movements and reading: A replication with increased power Journal Article In: Cognition, vol. 242, pp. 1–19, 2024. @article{Liversedge2024, Liversedge, Drieghe, Li, Yan, Bai and Hyönä (2016) reported an eye movement study that investigated reading in Chinese, Finnish and English (languages with markedly different orthographic characteristics). Analyses of the eye movement records showed robust differences in fine grained characteristics of eye movements between languages, however, overall sentence reading times did not differ. Liversedge et al. interpreted the entire set of results across languages as reflecting universal aspects of processing in reading. However, the study has been criticized as being statistically underpowered (Brysbaert, 2019) given that only 19–21 subjects were tested in each language. Also, given current best practice, the original statistical analyses can be considered to be somewhat weak (e.g., no inclusion of random slopes and no formal comparison of performance between the three languages). Finally, the original study did not include any formal statistical model to assess effects across all three languages simultaneously. To address these (and some other) concerns, we tested at least 80 new subjects in each language and conducted formal statistical modeling of our data across all three languages. To do this, we included an index that captured variability in visual complexity in each language. Unlike the original findings, the new analyses showed shorter total sentence reading times for Chinese relative to Finnish and English readers. The other main findings reported in the original study were consistent. We suggest that the faster reading times for Chinese subjects occurred due to cultural changes that have taken place in the decade or so that lapsed between when the original and current subjects were tested. We maintain our view that the results can be taken to reflect universality in aspects of reading and we evaluate the claims regarding a lack of statistical power that were levelled against the original article. |
Xu Liu; Yu Li; Lihua Xu; Tianhong Zhang; Huiru Cui; Yanyan Wei; Mengqing Xia; Wenjun Su; Yingying Tang; Xiaochen Tang; Dan Zhang; Lothar Spillmann; Ian Max Andolina; Niall McLoughlin; Wei Wang; Jijun Wang Spatial and temporal abnormalities of spontaneous fixational saccades and their correlates with positive and cognitive symptoms in schizophrenia Journal Article In: Schizophrenia Bulletin, vol. 50, no. 1, pp. 78–88, 2024. @article{Liu2024, BACKGROUND AND HYPOTHESIS: Visual fixation is a dynamic process, with the spontaneous occurrence of microsaccades and macrosaccades. These fixational saccades are sensitive to the structural and functional alterations of the cortical-subcortical-cerebellar circuit. Given that dysfunctional cortical-subcortical-cerebellar circuit contributes to cognitive and behavioral impairments in schizophrenia, we hypothesized that patients with schizophrenia would exhibit abnormal fixational saccades and these abnormalities would be associated with the clinical manifestations. STUDY DESIGN: Saccades were recorded from 140 drug-naïve patients with first-episode schizophrenia and 160 age-matched healthy controls during ten separate trials of 6-second steady fixations. Positive and negative symptoms were assessed using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Cognition was assessed using the Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB). STUDY RESULTS: Patients with schizophrenia exhibited fixational saccades more vertically than controls, which was reflected in more vertical saccades with angles around 90° and a greater vertical shift of horizontal saccades with angles around 0° in patients. The fixational saccades, especially horizontal saccades, showed longer durations, faster peak velocities, and larger amplitudes in patients. Furthermore, the greater vertical shift of horizontal saccades was associated with higher PANSS total and positive symptom scores in patients, and the longer duration of horizontal saccades was associated with lower MCCB neurocognitive composite, attention/vigilance, and speed of processing scores. Finally, based solely on these fixational eye movements, a K-nearest neighbors model classified patients with an accuracy of 85%. Conclusions: Our results reveal spatial and temporal abnormalities of fixational saccades and suggest fixational saccades as a promising biomarker for cognitive and positive symptoms and for diagnosis of schizophrenia. |
Marianna Kyriacou Not batting an eye: Figurative meanings of L2 idioms do not interfere with literal uses Journal Article In: Languages, vol. 9, no. 32, pp. 1–15, 2024. @article{Kyriacou2024, Encountering idioms (hit the sack = “go to bed”) in a second language (L2) often results in a literal-first understanding (“literally hit a sack”). The figurative meaning is retrieved later, subject to idiom familiarity and L2 proficiency, and typically at a processing cost. Intriguingly recent findings report the overextension of idiom use in inappropriate contexts by advanced L2 users, with greater L2 proficiency somewhat mitigating this effect. In this study, we tested the tenability of this finding by comparing eye-movement patterns for idioms used literally, vs. literal control phrases (hit the dirt) in an eye-tracking-while-reading paradigm. We hypothesised that if idiom overextension holds, processing delays should be observed for idioms, as the (over)activated but contextually irrelevant figurative meanings would cause interference. In contrast, unambiguous control phrases should be faster to process. The results demonstrated undifferentiated processing for idioms used literally and control phrases across measures, with L2 proficiency affecting both similarly. Therefore, the findings do not support the hypothesis that advanced L2 users overextend idiom use in inappropriate contexts, nor that L2 proficiency modulates this tendency. The results are also discussed in light of potential pitfalls pertaining to idiom priming under typical experimental settings. WABBLE: |
Victor Kuperman; Sascha Schroeder; Daniil Gnetov Word length and frequency effects on text reading are highly similar in 12 alphabetic languages Journal Article In: Journal of Memory and Language, vol. 135, pp. 1–15, 2024. @article{Kuperman2024, Reading research robustly finds that shorter and more frequent words are recognized faster and skipped more often than longer and less frequent words. An empirical question that has not been tested yet is whether languages within the same writing system would produce similarly strong length and frequency effects or whether typological differences between written languages would cause those effects to vary systematically in their magnitude. We analyzed text reading eye-movement data in 12 alphabetic languages from the Multilingual Eye-Movement Corpus (MECO). The languages varied substantially in their word length and frequency distributions as a function of their orthographic depth and morpho-syntactic type. Yet, the effects of word length and frequency on fixation durations and skipping rate were highly similar in size between the languages. This finding suggests a high degree of cross-linguistic universality in the readers' behavioral response to linguistic complexity (indexed by word length) and the amount of experience with the word (indexed by word frequency). These findings run counter to influential theories of single word recognition, which predict orthographic depth of a language to modulate the size of these benchmark effects. They also facilitate development of cross-linguistically generalizable computational models of eye-movement control in reading. |
Kristina Krasich; Kevin O'Neill; Samuel Murray; James R. Brockmole; Felipe De Brigard; Antje Nuthmann A computational modeling approach to investigating mind wandering-related adjustments to gaze behavior during scene viewing Journal Article In: Cognition, vol. 242, pp. 1–10, 2024. @article{Krasich2024, Research on gaze control has long shown that increased visual-cognitive processing demands in scene viewing are associated with longer fixation durations. More recently, though, longer durations have also been linked to mind wandering, a perceptually decoupled state of attention marked by decreased visual-cognitive processing. Toward better understanding the relationship between fixation durations and visual-cognitive processing, we ran simulations using an established random-walk model for saccade timing and programming and assessed which model parameters best predicted modulations in fixation durations associated with mind wandering compared to attentive viewing. Mind wandering-related fixation durations were best described as an increase in the variability of the fixation-generating process, leading to more variable—sometimes very long—durations. In contrast, past research showed that increased processing demands increased the mean duration of the fixation-generating process. The findings thus illustrate that mind wandering and processing demands modulate fixation durations through different mechanisms in scene viewing. This suggests that processing demands cannot be inferred from changes in fixation durations without understanding the underlying mechanism by which these changes were generated. |
Ziva Korda; Sonja Walcher; Christof Korner; Mathias Benedek Decoupling of the pupillary light response during internal attention : The modulating effect of luminance intensity Journal Article In: Acta Psychologica, vol. 242, pp. 1–11, 2024. @article{Korda2024, In a world full of sensory stimuli, attention guides us between the external environment and our internal thoughts. While external attention involves processing sensory stimuli, internal attention is devoted to self-generated representations such as planning or spontaneous mind wandering. They both draw from common cognitive resources, thus simultaneous engagement in both often leads to interference between processes. In order to maintain internal focus, an attentional mechanism known as perceptual decoupling takes effect. This mechanism supports internal cognition by decoupling attention from the perception of sensory information. Two previous studies of our lab investigated to what extent perceptual decoupling is evident in voluntary eye movements. Findings showed that the effect is mediated by the internal task modality and workload (visuospatial > arithmetic and high > low, respectively). However, it remains unclear whether it extends to involuntary eye behavior, which may not share cognitive resources with internal activities. Therefore, the present experiment aimed to further elucidate attentional dynamics by examining whether internal attention affects the pupillary light response (PLR). Specifically, we consistently observed that workload and task modality of the internal task reduced the PLR to luminance changes of medium intensity. However, the PLR to strong luminance changes was less or not at all affected by the internal task. These results suggest that perceptual decoupling effects may be less consistent in involuntary eye behavior, particularly in the context of a salient visual stimulus. |
Damian Koevoet; Marnix Naber; Stefan Stigchel The intensity of internal and external attention assessed with pupillometry Journal Article In: Journal of Cognition, vol. 7, pp. 1–10, 2024. @article{Koevoet2024, Not only is visual attention shifted to objects in the external world, attention can also be directed to objects in memory. We have recently shown that pupil size indexes how strongly items are attended externally, which was reflected in more precise encoding into visual working memory. Using a retro-cuing paradigm, we here replicated this finding by showing that stronger pupil constrictions during encoding were reflective of the depth of encoding. Importantly, we extend this previous work by showing that pupil size also revealed the intensity of internal attention toward content stored in visual working memory. Specifically, pupil dilation during the prioritization of one among multiple internally stored representations predicted the precision of the prioritized item. Furthermore, the dynamics of the pupillary responses revealed that the intensity of internal and external attention independently determined the precision of internalized visual representations. Our results show that both internal and external attention are not all-or-none processes, but should rather be thought of as continuous resources that can be deployed at varying intensities. The employed pupillometric approach allows to unravel the intricate interplay between internal and external attention and their effects on visual working memory. |
Aine Ito; Huong Thi Thu Nguyen; Pia Knoeferle German-dominant Vietnamese heritage speakers use semantic constraints of German for anticipation during comprehension in Vietnamese Journal Article In: Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, vol. 27, pp. 57–74, 2024. @article{Ito2024, To test effects of German on anticipation in Vietnamese, we recorded eye-movements during comprehension and manipulated i) verb constraints (different vs. similar in German and Vietnamese) and ii) classifier constraints (absent in German). In each of two experiments, participants listened to Vietnamese sentences like "Mai mac mot chic áo."('Mai wears a [classifier] shirt.'), while viewing four objects. Between experiments, we contrasted bilingual background: L1 Vietnamese-L2 German late bilinguals (Experiment 1) and heritage speakers of Vietnamese in Germany (Experiment 2). Both groups anticipated verb-compatible and classifier-compatible objects upon hearing the verb/classifier. However, when the (verb) constraints differed (e.g., Vietnamese: mac 'wear (a shirt/#earrings)' - German: tragen 'wear (a shirt/earrings)'), the heritage speakers were distracted by the object (earrings) compatible with the German (but not the Vietnamese) verb constraints. These results demonstrate that competing information in the two languages can interfere with anticipation in heritage speakers. |
Jukka Hyönä; Lei Cui; Timo T. Heikkilä; Birgitta Paranko; Yun Gao; Xingzhi Su Reading compound words in Finnish and Chinese: An eye-tracking study Journal Article In: Journal of Memory and Language, vol. 134, pp. 1–16, 2024. @article{Hyoenae2024, Two eye-tracking experiments in alphabetic Finnish and two in logographic Chinese examined the recognition of two-constituent compound words in reading. In Finnish, two-constituent compound words vary greatly in length, whereas in Chinese they are identical in length. According to the visual acuity principle (Bertram & Hyönä, 2003), short Finnish compound words and all two-character Chinese compound words that fit in foveal vision are recognized holistically, whereas long Finnish compound words are recognized via components. Experiment 1 in Finnish provided evidence consistent with the account, whereas the results for long compound words presented in condensed font in Experiment 2 were inconsistent with it. In Chinese, the first-character frequency effect was non-significant even when the compound words were presented in large font. The Finnish results suggest that componential processing is necessary when the compound word entails more than 10 letters. The Chinese results are compatible with the Chinese Reading Model (Li & Pollatsek, 2020) that assumes whole-word representations to overrule the activation of components during compound word recognition. |
Janina Hüer; Pankhuri Saxena; Stefan Treuea Pathway-selective optogenetics reveals the functional anatomy of top–down attentional modulation in the macaque visual cortex Journal Article In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 121, no. 3, pp. 1–9, 2024. @article{Hueer2024, Spatial attention represents a powerful top–down influence on sensory responses in primate visual cortical areas. The frontal eye field (FEF) has emerged as a key candidate area for the source of this modulation. However, it is unclear whether the FEF exerts its effects via its direct axonal projections to visual areas or indirectly through other brain areas and whether the FEF affects both the enhancement of attended and the suppression of unattended sensory responses. We used pathway- selective optogenetics in rhesus macaques performing a spatial attention task to inhibit the direct input from the FEF to area MT, an area along the dorsal visual pathway specialized for the processing of visual motion information. Our results show that the optogenetic inhibition of the FEF input specifically reduces attentional modulation in MT by about a third without affecting the neurons' sensory response component. We find that the direct FEF- to- MT pathway contributes to both the enhanced processing of target stimuli and the suppression of distractors. The FEF, thus, selectively modulates firing rates in visual area MT, and it does so via its direct axonal projections. |
Zehao Huang; Xiaoting Duan; Gancheng Zhu; Shuai Zhang; Rong Wang; Zhiguo Wang Assessing the data quality of AdHawk MindLink eye-tracking glasses Journal Article In: Behavior Research Methods, pp. 1–17, 2024. @article{Huang2024, Most commercially available eye-tracking devices rely on video cameras and image processing algorithms to track gaze. Despite this, emerging technologies are entering the field, making high-speed, camera-less eye-tracking more accessible. In this study, a series of tests were conducted to compare the data quality of MEMS-based eye-tracking glasses (AdHawk MindLink) with three widely used camera-based eye-tracking devices (EyeLink Portable Duo, Tobii Pro Glasses 2, and SMI Eye Tracking Glasses 2). The data quality measures assessed in these tests included accuracy, precision, data loss, and system latency. The results suggest that, overall, the data quality of the eye-tracking glasses was lower compared to that of a desktop EyeLink Portable Duo eye-tracker. Among the eye-tracking glasses, the accuracy and precision of the MindLink eye-tracking glasses were either higher or on par with those of Tobii Pro Glasses 2 and SMI Eye Tracking Glasses 2. The system latency of MindLink was approximately 9 ms, significantly lower than that of camera-based eye-tracking devices found in VR goggles. These results suggest that the MindLink eye-tracking glasses show promise for research applications where high sampling rates and low latency are preferred. |
Nimrod Hertz-Palmor; Yam Yosef; Hadar Hallel; Inbar Bernat; Amit Lazarov Exploring the ‘mood congruency' hypothesis of attention allocation – An eye-tracking study Journal Article In: Journal of Affective Disorders, vol. 347, pp. 619–629, 2024. @article{HertzPalmor2024, Background: The ‘mood-congruency' hypothesis of attention allocation postulates that individuals' current emotional states affect their attention allocation, such that mood-congruent stimuli take precedence over non-congruent ones. This hypothesis has been further suggested as an underlying mechanism of biased attention allocation in depression. Methods: The present research explored the mood-congruency hypothesis using a novel video-based mood elicitation procedure (MEP) and an established eye-tracking attention allocation assessment task, elaborating prior research in the field. Specifically, in Study 1 (n = 91), a video-based MEP was developed and rigorously validated. In study 2 (n = 60), participants' attention allocation to sad and happy face stimuli, each presented separately alongside neutral faces, was assessed before and after the video-based MEP, with happiness induced in one group (n = 30) while inducing sadness in the other (n = 30). Results: In Study 1, the MEP yielded the intended modification of participants' current mood states (eliciting either sadness or happiness). Study 2 showed that while the MEP modified mood in the intended direction in both groups, replicating the results of Study 1, corresponding changes in attention allocation did not ensue in either group. A Bayesian analysis of pre-to-post mood elicitation changes in attention allocation supported this null finding. Moreover, results revealed an attention bias to happy faces across both groups and assessment points, suggestive of a trait-like positive bias in attention allocation among non-selected participants. Conclusion: Current results provide no evidence supporting the mood-congruency hypothesis, which suggests that (biased) attention allocation may be better conceptualized as a depressive trait, rather than a mood-congruent state. |
Yawen Guo; Jon D. Elhai; Christian Montag; Yang Wang; Haibo Yang Problematic mobile gamers have attention bias toward game social information Journal Article In: Computers in Human Behavior, vol. 152, pp. 1–13, 2024. @article{Guo2024, Attention bias towards game information influences players' problematic mobile game usage (PMGU). Social experience is an important part of games. This study aimed to explore attention bias mechanisms of problematic mobile gamers for game social information. Experiments 1 and 2 recruited 68 participants (19.82 ± 1.38 years), and used the dot-probe task to investigate attention bias among problematic mobile gamers. Results showed that reaction time and trial-level bias scores (TL-BS) of socially anxious problematic mobile gamers toward game social information were not significantly different from those toward game non-social information. Experiment 3 recruited 35 participants (19.71 ± 1.18 years), and combined eye-tracking technology with the dot-probe task to investigate problematic mobile gamers' attention bias and dynamic visual processing. Results of this last experiment showed that socially anxious problematic mobile gamers' first fixation latency for game social information was significantly shorter than for game non-social information, and their gaze duration and total fixation duration were significantly longer for social than game non-social information. In summary, the eye tracking experiments give support for the idea that socially anxious problematic mobile gamers show attention bias towards game social information, which is presented as the vigilance-maintenance pattern. |
Palpolage Don Shehan Hiroshan Gunawardane; Raymond Robert MacNeil; Leo Zhao; James Theodore Enns; Clarence Wilfred Silva; Mu Chiao A fusion algorithm based on a constant velocity model for improving the measurement of saccade parameters with electrooculography Journal Article In: Sensors, vol. 24, no. 540, pp. 1–19, 2024. @article{Gunawardane2024, Abstract: Electrooculography (EOG) serves as a widely employed technique for tracking saccadic eye movements in a diverse array of applications. These encompass the identification of various medical conditions and the development of interfaces facilitating human–computer interaction. Nonetheless, EOG signals are often met with skepticism due to the presence of multiple sources of noise interference. These sources include electroencephalography, electromyography linked to facial and extraocular muscle activity, electrical noise, signal artifacts, skin-electrode drifts, impedance fluctuations over time, and a host of associated challenges. Traditional methods of addressing these issues, such as bandpass filtering, have been frequently utilized to overcome these challenges but have the associated drawback of altering the inherent characteristics of EOG signals, encompassing their shape, magnitude, peak velocity, and duration, all of which are pivotal parameters in research studies. In prior work, several model-based adaptive denoising strategies have been introduced, incorporating mechanical and electrical model-based state estimators. However, these approaches are really complex and rely on brain and neural control models that have difficulty processing EOG signals in real time. In this present investigation, we introduce a real-time denoising method grounded in a constant velocity model, adopting a physics-based model-oriented approach. This approach is underpinned by the assumption that there exists a consistent rate of change in the cornea-retinal potential during saccadic movements. Empirical findings reveal that this approach remarkably preserves EOG saccade signals, resulting in a substantial enhancement of up to 29% in signal preservation during the denoising process when compared to alternative techniques, such as bandpass filters, constant acceleration models, and model-based fusion methods. WABBLE: |
M. Ghorbani; F. S. Izadi; S. S. Roshan; R. Ebrahimpour Assessing prospective teachers' geometric transformations thinking: A Van Hiele Theory-based analysis with eye tracking cognitive science method Journal Article In: Technology of Education Journal, vol. 18, no. 1, pp. 67–88, 2024. @article{Ghorbani2024, Background and Objectives: Geometric transformations have played a crucial role throughout history in various aspects of human life. Symmetry is one of the important concepts in school mathematics. Students' academic performance is intricately connected to the knowledge and skills of their educators. Recognizing the importance of prospective teachers )PTs( as future educators, in the initial stage, the aim of this research is to assess and analyze the levels of geometric thinking among prospective elementary teachers )PETs( utilizing Van Hiele's theory. Subsequently, the research seeks to delve into the thinking process and gaze patterns of prospective mathematics education teachers (PMETs) using the cognitive science method of eye tracking. Materials and Methods: This study focuses on investigating and evaluating the thinking of geometric transformations and problem-solving skills among prospective teachers (PTs(. The research method employed a combined survey method, encompassing two distinct tests conducted on two groups of PTs. The accessible statistical sample includes 50 participating PETs and 21 participating PEMTs from Iran. The PETs of Farhangian University of Isfahan were divided into two groups: 42 students who had not learned the concept of geometric transformations in their undergraduate program (NPGT), and 8 students who had learned this concept in their undergraduate program )PGT). To assess the level of geometric thinking among participants, a self-made geometric test based on Van Hiele's theory was utilized. The test reliability was assessed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient, which yielded a value of 0.68. Additionally, the validity of the test has been confirmed by some professors. In evaluating geometric thinking, a cognitive science method was performed. This method involved designing a psychophysical experiment and recording eye movements of the PMETs. The psychophysical experiment part was conducted in the computer laboratory of Shahid Rajaee Teacher Training University, Tehran, and was performed by Eyelink device and MATLAB software on student teachers of mathematics education of this university. Findings: The results of the research show that students recognize the shape with symmetry as a symmetrical shape, but they perform poorly in determining the type of symmetry of symmetrical shapes, especially when a shape has rotational symmetry or oblique axial symmetry or a combination of several types of symmetry. In the first stage, the evaluation of PETs responses showed that 34% of them were in the first level and 18% in the second level of Van Hiele. The cognitive findings revealed that PMETs demonstrated superior performance in recognizing symmetries characterized by a single type of symmetry, in contrast to shapes involving combinations of various symmetries. Examining the recorded eye-tracking images of the students revealed a difference in gaze patterns between the groups that gave correct and incorrect answers. In addition, this difference is also evident among images with different symmetries (reflection, central, rotational). Conclusions: The current research confirms the weakness of students in identifying the type of symmetry in symmetrical shapes. It also emphasizes the need to pay more attention to the training of PTs during their academic years. To address this, it is suggested to revise the curriculum concerning geometric transformations in the university courses for PTs training, additionally, the utilization of software such as Augmented Reality (AR) and GeoGebra can contribute to enhancing cognitive and visual abilities of PTs in comprehending the concept of symmetry. |
Nora Geiser; Brigitte Charlotte Kaufmann; Samuel Elia Johannes Knobel; Dario Cazzoli; Tobias Nef; Thomas Nyffeler Comparison of uni- and multimodal motion stimulation on visual neglect: A proof-of-concept study Journal Article In: Cortex, vol. 171, pp. 194–203, 2024. @article{Geiser2024, Spatial neglect is characterized by the failure to attend stimuli presented in the contralesional space. Typically, the visual modality is more severely impaired than the auditory one. This dissociation offers the possibility of cross-modal interactions, whereby auditory stimuli may have beneficial effects on the visual modality. A new auditory motion stimulation method with music dynamically moving from the right to the left hemispace has recently been shown to improve visual neglect. The aim of the present study was twofold: a) to compare the effects of unimodal auditory against visual motion stimulation, i.e., smooth pursuit training, which is an established therapeutical approach in neglect therapy and b) to explore whether a combination of auditory + visual motion stimulation, i.e., multimodal motion stimulation, would be more effective than unimodal auditory or visual motion stimulation. 28 patients with left-sided neglect due to a first-ever, right-hemispheric subacute stroke were included. Patients either received auditory, visual, or multimodal motion stimulation. The between-group effect of each motion stimulation condition as well as a control group without motion stimulation was investigated by means of a one-way ANOVA with the patient's visual exploration behaviour as an outcome variable. Our results showed that unimodal auditory motion stimulation is equally effective as unimodal visual motion stimulation: both interventions significantly improved neglect compared to the control group. Multimodal motion stimulation also significantly improved neglect, however, did not show greater improvement than unimodal auditory or visual motion stimulation alone. Besides the established visual motion stimulation, this proof-of-concept study suggests that auditory motion stimulation seems to be an alternative promising therapeutic approach to improve visual attention in neglect patients. Multimodal motion stimulation does not lead to any additional therapeutic gain. In neurorehabilitation, the implementation of either auditory or visual motion stimulation seems therefore reasonable. |
Beatriz García-Carrión; Francisco Muñoz-Leiva; Salvador Del Barrio-García; Lucia Porcu The effect of online message congruence, destination-positioning, and emojis on users' cognitive effort and affective evaluation Journal Article In: Journal of Destination Marketing and Management, vol. 31, pp. 1–13, 2024. @article{GarciaCarrion2024, In today's digital world, it is crucial that Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) understand how tourists process and assimilate the information they receive through social media, whether this is posted online by the destination itself or by other users. When it comes to understanding the effectiveness of DMOs' integrated marketing communication (IMC) strategies, it is important to examine the extent to which the congruence between those online messages posted by the destination and those posted by other users (electronic word-of-mouth) influences the effectiveness of the communication. Similarly, it is also of value to understand the degree to which the use of emojis in social media messages may enhance the effect of congruence on IMC effectiveness. The scientific literature has found that tourists' responses to the information published online by the destination will depend on the type of positioning it adopts on its social media. The novelty of the present study work lies in addressing these issues from a neuroscientific perspective, using eye-tracking technology, to study (i) the user's cognitive effort (based on ocular indicators) when processing social media content and (ii) their affective evaluation of that content. A factorial experiment is conducted on a sample of 58 Facebook users. The results point to the important role played by the level of message congruence in users' information-processing and demonstrate the contextualizing effect exerted by emojis. Additionally, this study highlights the need for further research into the cognitive processing of tourism messages relative to different positioning strategies. |
Eunice G. Fernandes; Benjamin W. Tatler; Gillian Slessor; Louise H. Phillips Age differences in gaze following: Older adults follow gaze more than younger adults when free-viewing scenes Journal Article In: Experimental Aging Research, vol. 50, no. 1, pp. 84–101, 2024. @article{Fernandes2024, Previous research investigated age differences in gaze following with an attentional cueing paradigm where participants view a face with averted gaze, and then respond to a target appearing in a location congruent or incongruent with the gaze cue. However, this paradigm is far removed from the way we use gaze cues in everyday settings. Here we recorded the eye movements of younger and older adults while they freely viewed naturalistic scenes where a person looked at an object or location. Older adults were more likely to fixate and made more fixations to the gazed-at location, compared to younger adults. Our findings suggest that, contrary to what was observed in the traditional gaze-cueing paradigm, in a non-constrained task that uses contextualized stimuli older adults follow gaze as much as or even more than younger adults. |
Cynthia Faurite; Louise Kauffmann; Benoit R. Cottereau Interaction between central and peripheral vision: Influence of distance and spatial frequencies Journal Article In: Journal of Vision, vol. 1, no. 3, pp. 1–22, 2024. @article{Faurite2024, Visual scene perception is based on reciprocal interactions between central and peripheral information. Such interactions are commonly investigated through the semantic congruence effect, which usually reveals a congruence effect of central vision on peripheral vision as strong as the reverse. The aim of the present study was to further investigate the mechanisms underlying central-peripheral visual interactions using a central-peripheral congruence paradigm through three behavioral experiments. We presented simultaneously a central and a peripheral stimulus, that could be either semantically congruent or incongruent. To assess the congruence effect of central vision on peripheral vision, participants had to categorize the peripheral target stimulus while ignoring the central distractor stimulus. To assess the congruence effect of the peripheral vision on central vision, they had to categorize the central target stimulus while ignoring the peripheral distractor stimulus. Experiment 1 revealed that the physical distance between central and peripheral stimuli influences central-peripheral visual interactions: Congruence effect of central vision is stronger when the distance between the target and the distractor is the shortest. Experiments 2 and 3 revealed that the spatial frequency content of distractors also influence central-peripheral interactions: Congruence effect of central vision is observed only when the distractor contained high spatial frequencies while congruence effect of peripheral vision is observed only when the distractor contained low spatial frequencies. These results raise the question of how these influences are exerted (bottom-up vs. top-down) and are discussed based on the retinocortical properties of the visual system and the predictive brain hypothesis. |
Camille Fakche; Laura Dugué Perceptual cycles travel across retinotopic space Journal Article In: Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, vol. 36, no. 1, pp. 200–216, 2024. @article{Fakche2024, Visual perception waxes and wanes periodically over time at low frequencies (theta: 4–7 Hz; alpha: 8–13 Hz), creating “peceptual cycles.” These perceptual cycles can be induced when stimulating the brain with a flickering visual stimulus at the theta or alpha frequency. Here, we took advantage of the well-known organization of the visual system into retinotopic maps (topographic correspondence between visual and cortical spaces) to assess the spatial organization of induced perceptual cycles. Specifically, we tested the hypothesis that they can propagate across the retinotopic space. A disk oscillating in luminance (inducer) at 4, 6, 8, or 10 Hz was presented in the periphery of the visual field to induce perceptual cycles at specific frequencies. EEG recordings verified that the brain responded at the corresponding inducer frequencies and their first harmonics. Perceptual cycles were assessed with a concurrent detection task—target stimuli were displayed at threshold contrast (50% detection) at random times during the inducer. Behavioral results confirmed that perceptual performance was modulated periodically by the inducer at each frequency. We additionally manipulated the distance between the target and the inducer (three possible positions) and showed that the optimal phase, that is, moment of highest target detection, shifted across target distance to the inducer, specifically when its flicker frequency was in the alpha range (8 and 10 Hz). These results demonstrate that induced alpha perceptual cycles travel across the retinotopic space in humans at a propagation speed of 0.3–0.5 m/sec, consistent with the speed of unmyelinated horizontal connections in the visual cortex. |
Eeva Eskola; Eeva-Leena Kataja; Jukka Hyönä; Hetti Hakanen; Saara Nolvi; Tuomo Häikiö; Juho Pelto; Hasse Karlsson; Linnea Karlsson; Riikka Korja Lower maternal emotional availability is related to increased attention toward fearful faces during infancy Journal Article In: Infant Behavior and Development, vol. 74, pp. 1–12, 2024. @article{Eskola2024, It has been suggested that infants' age-typical attention biases for faces and facial expressions have an inherent connection with the parent–infant interaction. However, only a few previous studies have addressed this topic. To investigate the association between maternal caregiving behaviors and an infant's attention for emotional faces, 149 mother–infant dyads were assessed when the infants were 8 months. Caregiving behaviors were observed during free-play interactions and coded using the Emotional Availability Scales. The composite score of four parental dimensions, that are sensitivity, structuring, non-intrusiveness, and non-hostility, was used in the analyses. Attention disengagement from faces was measured using eye tracking and face-distractor paradigm with neutral, happy, and fearful faces and scrambled-face control pictures as stimuli. The main finding was that lower maternal emotional availability was related to an infant's higher attention to fearful faces (p = .042), when infant sex and maternal age, education, and concurrent depressive and anxiety symptoms were controlled. This finding indicates that low maternal emotional availability may sensitize infants' emotion processing system for the signals of fear at least during this specific age around 8 months. The significance of the increased attention toward fearful faces during infancy is an important topic for future research. |
H. Ershaid; M. Lizarazu; D. J. McLaughlin; M. Cooke; O. Simantiraki; M. Koutsogiannaki; M. Lallier Contributions of listening effort and intelligibility to cortical tracking of speech in adverse listening conditions Journal Article In: Cortex, vol. 172, pp. 54–71, 2024. @article{Ershaid2024, Cortical tracking of speech is vital for speech segmentation and is linked to speech intelligibility. However, there is no clear consensus as to whether reduced intelligibility leads to a decrease or an increase in cortical speech tracking, warranting further investigation of the factors influencing this relationship. One such factor is listening effort, defined as the cognitive resources necessary for speech comprehension, and reported to have a strong negative correlation with speech intelligibility. Yet, no studies have examined the relationship between speech intelligibility, listening effort, and cortical tracking of speech. The aim of the present study was thus to examine these factors in quiet and distinct adverse listening conditions. Forty-nine normal hearing adults listened to sentences produced casually, presented in quiet and two adverse listening conditions: cafeteria noise and re- verberant speech. Electrophysiological responses were registered with electroencephalogram, and listening effort was estimated subjectively using self-reported scores and objectively using pupillometry. Results indicated varying impacts of adverse conditions on intelligibility, listening effort, and cortical tracking of speech, depending on the preservation of the speech temporal envelope. The more distorted envelope in the reverberant condition led to higher listening effort, as reflected in higher subjective scores, increased pupil diameter, and stronger cortical tracking of speech in the delta band. These findings suggest that using measures of listening effort in addition to those of intelligibility is useful for interpreting cortical tracking of speech results. Moreover, reading and phonological skills of participants were positively correlated with listening effort in the cafeteria condition, suggesting a special role of expert language skills in processing speech in this noisy condition. Implications for future research and theories linking atypical cortical tracking of speech and reading disorders are further discussed. |
Yufei Du; Haibo Yang The influence of subjective value on mobile payment security warnings: An eye movement study Journal Article In: Displays, vol. 82, pp. 1–11, 2024. @article{Du2024, Payment security has become a vital issue with the popularization of mobile payments among people and in various fields. Warnings are designed to alert users to potential risks but are only effective if users understand them. The current study aims to investigate whether the subjective value of colour formed by experiences influences the effectiveness of mobile payment security warnings. Using eye-tracking techniques, Experiment 1 compared the difference in user behaviour between the high-risk condition (red warnings) and the low-risk condition (green warnings). Experiment 2 detected whether the amounts transferred impacted users' behaviour that was affected by the subjective value of colour. The results showed that compared to a warning with a low-risk condition, warnings with a high-risk condition could capture the attention of participants more quickly, leading to more payment rejection. The results also showed that when making macro payments, the amounts may be prioritized over the subjective value of colour to drive attention and make the payment decision. This study shows the influence of users' characteristics on the interaction process and provides data to support interaction interface design and user behaviour research. |
Carola Dolci; Einat Rashal; Elisa Santandrea; Suliann Ben; Leonardo Chelazzi; Emiliano Macaluso; C. Nico Boehler The dynamics of statistical learning in visual search and its interaction with salience processing: An EEG study Journal Article In: NeuroImage, vol. 286, pp. 1–12, 2024. @article{Dolci2024, Visual attention can be guided by statistical regularities in the environment, that people implicitly learn from past experiences (statistical learning, SL). Moreover, a perceptually salient element can automatically capture attention, gaining processing priority through a bottom-up attentional control mechanism. The aim of our study was to investigate the dynamics of SL and if it shapes attentional target selection additively with salience processing, or whether these mechanisms interact, e.g. one gates the other. In a visual search task, we therefore manipulated target frequency (high vs. low) across locations while, in some trials, the target was salient in terms of colour. Additionally, halfway through the experiment, the high-frequency location changed to the opposite hemifield. EEG activity was simultaneously recorded, with a specific interest in two markers related to target selection and post-selection processing, respectively: N2pc and SPCN. Our results revealed that both SL and saliency significantly enhanced behavioural performance, but also interacted with each other, with an attenuated saliency effect at the high-frequency target location, and a smaller SL effect for salient targets. Concerning processing dynamics, the benefit of salience processing was more evident during the early stage of target se- lection and processing, as indexed by a larger N2pc and early-SPCN, whereas SL modulated the underlying neural activity particularly later on, as revealed by larger late-SPCN. Furthermore, we showed that SL was rapidly acquired and adjusted when the spatial imbalance changed. Overall, our findings suggest that SL is flexible to changes and, combined with salience processing, jointly contributes to establishing attentional priority. |
Vaibhav A. Diwadkar; Deborah Kashy; Jacqueline Bao; Katharine N. Thakkar Abnormal oculomotor corollary discharge signaling as a trans-diagnostic mechanism of psychosis Journal Article In: Schizophrenia Bulletin, pp. 1–11, 2024. @article{Diwadkar2024, Background and Hypothesis: Corollary discharge (CD) signals are “copies” of motor signals sent to sensory areas to predict the corresponding input. They are a posited mechanism enabling one to distinguish actions generated by oneself vs external forces. Consequently, altered CD is a hypothesized mechanism for agency disturbances in psychosis. Previous studies have shown a decreased influence of CD signals on visual perception in individuals with schizophrenia—particularly in those with more severe positive symptoms. We therefore hypothesized that altered CD may be a trans-diagnostic mechanism of psychosis. Study Design: We examined oculomotor CD (using the blanking task) in 49 participants with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (SZ), 36 bipolar participants with psychosis (BPP), and 40 healthy controls (HC). Participants made a saccade to a visual target. Upon saccade initiation, the target disappeared and reappeared at a horizontally displaced position. Participants indicated the direction of displacement. With intact CD, participants can make accurate perceptual judgements. Otherwise, participants may use saccade landing site as a proxy of pre-saccadic target to inform perception. Thus, multi-level modeling was used to examine the influence of target displacement and saccade landing site on displacement judgements. Study Results: SZ and BPP were equally less sensitive to target displacement than HC. Moreover, regardless of diagnosis, SZ and BPP with more severe positive symptoms were more likely to rely on saccade landing site. Conclusions: These results suggest that altered CD may be a trans-diagnostic mechanism of psychosis. |
Larisa-maria Dinu; Alexandra-Livia Georgescu; Samriddhi N. Singh; Nicola C. Byrom; G. Overton; Bryan F. Singer; Eleanor J. Dommett Sign-tracking and goal-tracking in humans: Utilising eye-tracking in clinical and non-clinical populations Journal Article In: Behavioural Brain Research, vol. 461, pp. 1–10, 2024. @article{Dinu2024, Background: In Pavlovian conditioning, learned behaviour varies according to the perceived value of environmental cues. For goal-trackers (GT), the cue merely predicts a reward, whilst for sign-trackers (ST), the cue holds incentive value. The sign-tracking/goal-tracking model is well-validated in animals, but translational work is lacking. Despite the model's relevance to several conditions, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), we are unaware of any studies that have examined the model in clinical populations. Methods: The current study used an eye-tracking Pavlovian conditioning paradigm to identify ST and GT in non- clinical (N = 54) and ADHD (N = 57) participants. Eye movements were recorded whilst performing the task. Dwell time was measured for two areas of interest: sign (i.e., cue) and goal (i.e., reward), and an eye-gaze index (EGI) was computed based on the dwell time sign-to-goal ratio. Higher EGI values indicate sign-tracking behaviour. ST and GT were determined using median and tertiary split approaches in both samples. Results: Despite greater propensity for sign-tracking in those with ADHD, there was no significant difference between groups. The oculomotor conditioned response was reward-specific (CS+) and present, at least partly, from the start of the task indicating dispositional and learned components. There were no differences in externalising behaviours between ST and GT for either sample. Conclusions: Sign-tracking is associated with CS+ trials only. There may be both dispositional and learned components to sign-tracking, potentially more common in those with ADHD. This holds translational potential for understanding individual differences in reward-learning. |
Sarah C. Creel; Conor I. Frye Minimal gains for minimal pairs: Difficulty in learning similar-sounding words continues into preschool Journal Article In: Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, vol. 240, pp. 1–27, 2024. @article{Creel2024, A critical indicator of spoken language knowledge is the ability to discern the finest possible distinctions that exist between words in a language—minimal pairs, for example, the distinction between the novel words beesh and peesh. Infants differentiate similar-sounding novel labels like “bih” and “dih” by 17 months of age or earlier in the context of word learning. Adult word learners readily distinguish similar-sounding words. What is unclear is the shape of learning between infancy and adulthood: Is there a nonlinear increase early in development, or is there protracted improvement as experience with spoken language amasses? Three experiments tested monolingual English-speaking children aged 3 to 6 years and young adults. Children underperformed when learning minimal-pair words compared with adults (Experiment 1), compared with learning dissimilar words even when speech materials were optimized for young children (Experiment 2), and when the number of word instances during learning was quadrupled (Experiment 3). Nonetheless, the youngest group readily recognized familiar minimal pairs (Experiment 3). Results are consistent with a lengthy trajectory for detailed sound pattern learning in one's native language(s), although other interpretations are possible. Suggestions for research on developmental trajectories across various age ranges are made. |
Mariya V. Cherkasova; Luke Clark; Jason J. S. Barton; A. Jon Stoessl; A. Winstanley Risk-promoting effects of reward-paired cues in human sign- and goal-trackers Journal Article In: Behavioural Brain Research, vol. 461, pp. 1–13, 2024. @article{Cherkasova2024, Animal research suggests trait-like individual variation in the degree of incentive salience attribution to reward- predictive cues, defined phenotypically as sign-tracking (high) and goal-tracking (low incentive salience attri- bution). While these phenotypes have been linked to addiction features in rodents, their translational validity is less clear. Here, we examined whether sign- and goal-tracking in healthy human volunteers modulates the effects of reward-paired cues on decision making. Sign-tracking was measured in a Pavlovian conditioning paradigm as the amount of eye gaze fixation on the reward-predictive cue versus the location of impending reward delivery. In Study 1 (Cherkasova et al., 2018), participants were randomly assigned to perform a binary choice task in which rewards were either accompanied (cued |
Maya Campbell; Nicole Oppenheimer; Alex L. White Severe processing capacity limits for sub-lexical features of letter strings Journal Article In: Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, pp. 1–10, 2024. @article{Campbell2024, When reading, the visual system is confronted with many words simultaneously. How much of that information can a reader process at once? Previous studies demonstrated that low-level visual features of multiple words are processed in parallel, but lexical attributes are processed serially, for one word at a time. This implies that an internal bottleneck lies somewhere between early visual and lexical analysis. We used a dual-task behavioral paradigm to investigate whether this bottleneck lies at the stage of letter recognition or phonological decoding. On each trial, two letter strings were flashed briefly, one above and one below fixation, and then masked. In the letter identification experiment, participants indicated whether a vowel was present in a particular letter string. In the phonological decoding experiment, participants indicated whether the letter string was pronounceable. We compared accuracy in a focused attention condition, in which participants judged only one of the two strings, with accuracy in a divided attention condition, in which participants judged both strings independently. In both experiments, the cost of dividing attention was so large that it supported a serial model: participants were able to process only one letter string per trial. Furthermore, we found a stimulus processing trade-off that is characteristic of serial processing: When participants judged one string correctly, they were less likely to judge the other string correctly. Therefore, the bottleneck that constrains word recognition under these conditions arises at a sub-lexical level, perhaps due to a limit on the efficiency of letter recognition. |
Ethan S. Bromberg-Martin; Yang-Yang Feng; Takaya Ogasawara; J. Kael White; Kaining Zhang; Ilya E. Monosov A neural mechanism for conserved value computations integrating information and rewards Journal Article In: Nature Neuroscience, vol. 27, pp. 1–17, 2024. @article{BrombergMartin2024, Behavioral and economic theory dictate that we decide between options based on their values. However, humans and animals eagerly seek information about uncertain future rewards, even when this does not provide any objective value. This implies that decisions are made by endowing information with subjective value and integrating it with the value of extrinsic rewards, but the mechanism is unknown. Here, we show that human and monkey value judgements obey strikingly conserved computational principles during multi-attribute decisions trading off information and extrinsic reward. We then identify a neural substrate in a highly conserved ancient structure, the lateral habenula (LHb). LHb neurons signal subjective value, integrating information's value with extrinsic rewards, and the LHb predicts and causally influences ongoing decisions. Neurons in key input areas to the LHb largely signal components of these computations, not integrated value signals. Thus, our data uncover neural mechanisms of conserved computations underlying decisions to seek information about the future. |
Andy Brendler; Max Schneider; Immanuel G. Elbau; Rui Sun; Taechawidd Nantawisarakul; Dorothee Pöhlchen; Tanja Brückl; A. K. Brem; E. B. Binder; A. Erhardt; J. Fietz; N. C. Grandi; Y. Kim; S. Ilić-Ćoćić; L. Leuchs; S. Lucae; T. Namendorf; J. Pape; L. Schilbach; I. Mücke-Heim; J. Ziebula; Michael Czisch; Philipp G. Sämann; Michael D. Lee; Victor I. Spoormaker In: Scientific Reports, vol. 14, no. 344, pp. 1–11, 2024. @article{Brendler2024, Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a devastating and heterogenous disorder for which there are no approved biomarkers in clinical practice. We recently identified anticipatory hypo-arousal indexed by pupil responses as a candidate mechanism subserving depression symptomatology. Here, we conducted a replication and extension study of these findings. We analyzed a replication sample of 40 unmedicated patients with a diagnosis of depression and 30 healthy control participants, who performed a reward anticipation task while pupil responses were measured. Using a Bayesian modelling approach taking measurement uncertainty into account, we could show that the negative correlation between pupil dilation and symptom load during reward anticipation is replicable within MDD patients, albeit with a lower effect size. Furthermore, with the combined sample of 136 participants (81 unmedicated depressed and 55 healthy control participants), we further showed that reduced pupil dilation in anticipation of reward is inversely associated with anhedonia items of the Beck Depression Inventory in particular. Moreover, using simultaneous fMRI, particularly the right anterior insula as part of the salience network was negatively correlated with depressive symptom load in general and anhedonia items specifically. The present study supports the utility of pupillometry in assessing noradrenergically mediated hypo-arousal during reward anticipation in MDD, a physiological process that appears to subserve anhedonia. |
Zoé Bollen; Arthur Pabst; Nicolas Masson; Reinout W. Wiers; Matt Field; Pierre Maurage Craving modulates attentional bias towards alcohol in severe alcohol use disorder: An eye-tracking study Journal Article In: Addiction, vol. 119, no. 1, pp. 1–11, 2024. @article{Bollen2024, Background and aims: Competing models disagree on three theoretical questions regarding alcohol-related attentional bias (AB), a key process in severe alcohol use disorder (SAUD): (1) is AB more of a trait (fixed, associated with alcohol use severity) or state (fluid, associated with momentary craving states) characteristic of SAUD; (2) does AB purely reflect the over-activation of the reflexive/reward system or is it also influenced by the activity of the reflective/control system and (3) does AB rely upon early or later processing stages? We addressed these issues by investigating the time-course of AB and its modulation by subjective craving and cognitive load in SAUD. Design: A free-viewing eye-tracking task, presenting pictures of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, combined with a concurrent cognitive task with three difficulty levels. Setting: A laboratory setting in the detoxification units of three Belgian hospitals. Participants: We included 30 patients with SAUD self-reporting craving at testing time, 30 patients with SAUD reporting a total absence of craving and 30 controls matched on sex and age. All participants from SAUD groups met the DSM-5 criteria for SAUD. Measurements: We assessed AB through early and late eye-tracking indices. We evaluated the modulation of AB by craving (comparison between patients with/without craving) and cognitive load (variation of AB with the difficulty level of the concurrent task). Findings: Dwell time measure indicated that SAUD patients with craving allocated more attention towards alcohol-related stimuli than patients without craving (P < 0.001 |
Jacek Bielas; Damian Przybycień; Łukasz Michalczyk Temperament affected visuospatial orienting on discrimination tasks Journal Article In: Perceptual and Motor Skills, vol. 0, no. 0, pp. 1–15, 2024. @article{Bielas2024, In the Posner cueing paradigm, the early attentional capture and subsequent inhibition of return (IOR) of attention to the same location, although they are microscale phenomena measured in milliseconds, seem to encapsulate the interaction between two fundamental dimensions of behavior - engaging in and sustaining activity versus withdrawing from and inhibiting activity. In the field of differential psychology, the dynamics of reciprocal relations between these behavioral dimensions have been thought to be determined by central nervous system properties that constitute an individual's temperament. Yet the research on any differential effects of temperament on visuospatial orienting is rather sparse and has produced ambiguous results. Here, we used saccadic responses to measure whether individual differences in reactivity as a temperamental trait might affect orienting of visuospatial attention on discrimination cueing tasks. Our results suggested that, in individuals with lower reactivity, attentional capture took place at a short stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA), producing a facilitatory cueing effect, which was not the case in those who were higher in reactivity. We explain and discuss these results with the Regulative Theory of Temperament. |
Omer Azriel; Gal Arad; Daniel S. Pine; Amit Lazarov; Yair Bar-Haim Attention bias vs. attention control modification for social anxiety disorder: A randomized controlled trial Journal Article In: Journal of Anxiety Disorders, vol. 101, pp. 1–10, 2024. @article{Azriel2024, Gaze-Contingent Music Reward Therapy (GC-MRT) is an eye-tracking-based attention bias modification protocol for social anxiety disorder (SAD) with established clinical efficacy. However, it remains unclear if improvement following GC-MRT hinges on modification of threat-related attention or on more general enhancement of attention control. Here, 50 patients with SAD were randomly allocated to GC-MRT using either threat faces or shapes. Results indicate comparable reductions in social anxiety and co-morbid depression symptoms in the two conditions. Patients in the shapes condition showed a significant increase in attention control and a reduction in attention to both the trained shapes and threat faces, whereas patients in the faces condition showed a reduction in attention to threat faces only. These findings suggest that enhancement of attention control, independent of valence-specific attention modification, may facilitate reduction in SAD symptoms. Alternative interpretations and clinical implications of the current findings are discussed. |
Reza Azadi; Emily Lopez; Jessica Taubert; Amanda Patterson; Arash Afraz Inactivation of face- selective neurons alters eye movements when free viewing faces Journal Article In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 121, no. 3, pp. 1–10, 2024. @article{Azadi2024a, During free viewing, faces attract gaze and induce specific fixation patterns corresponding to the facial features. This suggests that neurons encoding the facial features are in the causal chain that steers the eyes. However, there is no physiological evidence to support a mechanistic link between face- encoding neurons in high- level visual areas and the oculo- motor system. In this study, we targeted the middle face patches of the inferior temporal (IT) cortex in two macaque monkeys using an functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) localizer. We then utilized muscimol microinjection to unilaterally suppress IT neural activity inside and outside the face patches and recorded eye movements while the animals free viewing natural scenes. Inactivation of the face- selective neurons altered the pattern of eye movements on faces: The monkeys found faces in the scene but neglected the eye contralateral to the inactivation hemisphere. These findings reveal the causal contribution of the high- level visual cortex in eye movements. |
Reza Azadi; Alex O. Holcombe; Jay A. Edelman Hypometria of saccadic eye movements to targets in rapid circular motion Journal Article In: Journal of Vision, vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 1–19, 2024. @article{Azadi2024, Saccades to objects moving on a straight trajectory take the velocity of the object into account. However, it is not known whether saccades can compensate for curved trajectories, nor is it known how they are affected by high target speeds. In Experiment 1, participants made a saccade in a delayed saccade task to a target moving in a circular trajectory. Surprisingly, saccades to high-speed moving targets were severely hypometric, with gains of only ∼55% for trajectories of the largest angular speed (2 revolutions per second) and eccentricity (12°). They also had unusually low peak velocities. In Experiment 2, the target jumped along a circular path around a central fixation point. Hypometria was still severe, except for very large jumps. Experiment 3 was like Experiment 1, except that a landmark was positioned on the trajectory of the target, and participants were instructed to make a saccade to the landmark or to its memorized location. This ameliorated hypometria considerably. Given the delayed nature of the tasks of Experiments 1 and 2, participants had considerable time to program a voluntary saccade to a location on the trajectory, if not to the rapidly moving target itself. Nevertheless, the abnormal saccade properties indicate that motor programming was compromised. These results indicate that motor output can be inextricably bound to sensory input to its detriment, even during a highly voluntary motor act; that apparent motion can produce this behavior; and that such abnormal saccades can be "rescued" by the presence of a stable visual goal. |
Scott P. Ardoin; Katherine S. Binder; Paulina A. Kulesz; Eloise Nimocks; Joshua A. Mellott Examining the influence of passage and student characteristics on test-taking strategies: An eye-tracking study Journal Article In: Learning and Individual Differences, vol. 109, pp. 1–12, 2024. @article{Ardoin2024, Understanding test-taking strategies (TTSs) and the variables that influence TTSs is crucial to understanding what reading comprehension tests measure. We examined how passage and student characteristics were associated with TTSs and their impact on response accuracy. Third (n = 78), fifth (n = 86), and eighth (n = 86) graders read and answered questions associated with six passages. Eye-movement records were used to code TTSs. Results indicated that TTS choice was related to passage and student characteristics. Passage characteristics that make comprehension more difficult resulted in more students choosing a TTS that did not involve reading passages in their entirety before answering questions. TTSs encompassing reading passages in their entirety before answering questions resulted in higher accuracy for 5th and 8th graders. Understanding TTS choices can aid our understanding of the processes measured by reading comprehension tests, what TTS should be encouraged, and what contributes to tests producing different outcomes. Educational relevance statement Schools spend considerable time and money collecting and interpreting the outcomes of reading comprehension tests. To truly understand what these test results mean, we must understand what students are doing when taking reading comprehension tests. Furthermore, we need to know to what extent certain tests and student characteristics might be associated with test-taking strategies that avoid reading passages for comprehension. Finally, teachers need to know whether certain test-taking strategies might positively or negatively impact response accuracy to know what strategies to teach and not to teach. The current study was designed to provide answers relevant to these important educational matters. |
Laura Nuding; Linda Lukas; Belinda Platt; Gerd Schulte-Körne; Anca Sfärlea Look me in the eyes! A preliminary study on eye-contact in adolescents with anorexia nervosa Journal Article In: European Eating Disorders Review, vol. 32, no. 1, pp. 13–19, 2024. @article{Nuding2024, Objective: Anorexia nervosa (AN) is often associated with impairments in the socio-emotional domain. Avoidance of eye-contact may underlie some of these difficulties and has been found in adults with AN in several studies. This study aimed to clarify whether adolescents with AN also show reduced eye-contact when viewing social stimuli, that is, faces. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, girls aged 12–18 years with AN (n = 38) were compared with a clinical (girls with depression and/or anxiety disorders; n = 30) and a healthy (n = 36) control group. Eye-contact was operationalised as maintenance of visual attention to the eye-area of faces showing different emotional expressions (happy, angry, afraid, sad, neutral), recorded via eye-tracking. Results: Contrary to our expectations, we did not find adolescents with AN to dwell less on the eye-area than control groups; instead, we found preliminary evidence for increased attention to the eye-area in the AN group compared to the healthy control group. Conclusions: The results suggest that reduced eye-contact found in adult AN samples is not (yet) present in adolescents with AN but may develop with the prolonged duration of the disorder. However, replication and longitudinal studies are needed to confirm this assumption. |
Amir Norouzpour; Tawna L. Roberts Fcirc statistic for steady-state evoked potentials; a generalized version of Tcirc2 statistic Journal Article In: Biomedical Signal Processing and Control, vol. 87, pp. 1–8, 2024. @article{Norouzpour2024, Introduction: Steady-state evoked potentials (ssEP) provide objective tools for studying brain function in different experimental conditions. Frequency components of brain response to repetitive stimuli have been analyzed using Tcirc2 statistic; however, Tcirc2 statistic is limited to comparisons between two means. Here, we present a generalized version of Tcirc2 statistic which enables us to compare multiple means of Fourier estimates corresponding to multiple conditions within participant(s) or multiple groups of participants. Methods: Frequency components of brain response are extracted from ssEP data using Fourier transform. Discrete Fourier measurements at frequency of interest are represented on the complex plane for statistical analyses. We present a new statistic called Fcirc statistic to compare three or more clusters of Fourier estimates whether they have equal or unequal variances or/and numbers of samples. Fcirc statistic derives from Welch's test but for multiple comparisons. Results: We demonstrate the validity of Fcirc statistic using simulated and empirical clusters of Fourier estimates with equal and unequal variances and numbers of samples. Type-I error remains 0.05 for all the conditions. Furthermore, we illustrate that the probability of achieving a significant difference among multiple means when the true means are unequal depends on the total length of ssEP data but is independent of the duration chosen for performing Fourier transform on a fixed length of ssEP data. Conclusion: Fcirc statistic is useful for multiple intra- and inter-participant and group comparisons of brain response at any frequency component extracted from ssEP data whether the group means have equal or unequal variances. |
Victoria I. Nicholls; Jan Wiener; Andrew Isaac Meso; Sebastien Miellet The impact of perceptual complexity on road crossing decisions in younger and older adults Journal Article In: Scientific Reports, vol. 14, no. 479, pp. 1–14, 2024. @article{Nicholls2024, Cognitive abilities decline with healthy ageing which can have a critical impact on day-to-day activities. One example is road crossing where older adults (OAs) disproportionally fall victim to pedestrian accidents. The current research examined two virtual reality experiments that investigated how the complexity of the road crossing situation impacts OAs (N = 19, ages 65–85) and younger adults (YAs |
Yunyun Mu; Anna Schubö; Jan Tünnermann Adapting attentional control settings in a shape-changing environment Journal Article In: Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, pp. 1–18, 2024. @article{Mu2024, In rich visual environments, humans have to adjust their attentional control settings in various ways, depending on the task. Especially if the environment changes dynamically, it remains unclear how observers adapt to these changes. In two experiments (online and lab-based versions of the same task), we investigated how observers adapt their target choices while searching for color singletons among shape distractor contexts that changed over trials. The two equally colored targets had shapes that differed from each other and matched a varying number of distractors. Participants were free to select either target. The results show that participants adjusted target choices to the shape ratio of distractors: even though the task could be finished by focusing on color only, participants showed a tendency to choose targets matching with fewer distractors in shape. The time course of this adaptation showed that the regularities in the changing environment were taken into account. A Bayesian modeling approach was used to provide a fine-grained picture of how observers adapted their behavior to the changing shape ratio with three parameters: the strength of adaptation, its delay relative to the objective distractor shape ratio, and a general bias toward specific shapes. Overall, our findings highlight that systematic changes in shape, even when it is not a target-defining feature, influence how searchers adjust their attentional control settings. Furthermore, our comparison between lab-based and online assessments with this paradigm suggests that shape is a good choice as a feature dimension in adaptive choice online experiments. WABBLE |
Sara Milligan; Elizabeth R. Schotter Do readers here what they sea?: Effects of lexicality, predictability, and individual differences on the phonological preview benefit Journal Article In: Journal of Memory and Language, vol. 135, pp. 1–14, 2024. @article{Milligan2024, For decades, researchers have debated whether readers benefit from translating visual word forms into phonological codes. A focus of this debate has been on the earliest moments of processing when a word is perceived in parafoveal vision (i.e., phonological preview benefit). A recent meta-analysis (Vasilev et al., 2019) concluded that the phonological preview benefit may be small and unreliable but they did not take into account potentially important stimulus-level or participant-level factors that varied across the included studies. Therefore, we conducted two well-powered experiments that systematically investigated the effects of sentence constraint, preview lexicality, and participant language skills on the phonological preview benefit effect. We found phonological preview benefits that were larger in high versus low constraint sentences, larger for words than pseudowords, and larger for better spellers. We conclude that phonological codes do facilitate early word recognition during reading, but that the phonological preview benefit magnitude depends on subject- and stimulus-level factors. |
Alma Sophia Merscher; Matthias Gamer Fear lies in the eyes of the beholder—Robust evidence for reduced gaze dispersion upon avoidable threat Journal Article In: Psychophysiology, vol. 61, no. 1, pp. 1–16, 2024. @article{Merscher2024, A rapid detection and processing of relevant information in our environment is crucial for survival. The human eyes are drawn to social or threatening stimuli as they may carry essential information on how to behave appropriately in a given context. Recent studies further showed a centralization of gaze that reminded of freezing behaviors in rodents. Probably constituting a component of an adaptive defense mode, centralized eye movements predicted the speed of motor actions. Here we conducted two experiments to examine if and how these presumably survival-relevant gaze patterns interact. Subjects viewed images including social, that is, faces (Experiment 1 |
2023 |
Chuanli Zang; Zhichao Zhang; Manman Zhang; Federica Degno; Simon P. Liversedge; Zhang Manman; Federica Degno; Simon P. Liversedge Examining semantic parafoveal-on-foveal effects using a Stroop boundary paradigm Journal Article In: Journal of Memory and Language, vol. 128, pp. 1–14, 2023. @article{Zang2023, The issue of whether lexical processing occurs serially or in parallel has been a central and contentious issue in respect of models of eye movement control in reading for well over a decade. A critical question in this regard concerns whether lexical parafoveal-on-foveal effects exist in reading. Because Chinese is an unspaced and densely packed language, readers may process parafoveal words to a greater extent than they do in spaced alphabetic languages. In two experiments using a novel Stroop boundary paradigm (Rayner, 1975), participants read sentences containing a single-character color-word whose preview was manipulated (identity or pseudocharacter, printed in black [no-color], or in a color congruent or incongruent with the character meaning). Two boundaries were used, one positioned two characters before the target and one immediately to the left of the target. The previews changed from black to color and then back to black as the eyes crossed the first and then the second boundary respectively. In Experiment 1 four color-words (red, green, yellow and blue) were used and in Experiment 2 only red and green color-words were used as targets. Both experiments showed very similar patterns such that reading times were increased for colored compared to no-color previews indicating a parafoveal visual interference effect. Most importantly, however, there were no robust interactive effects. Preview effects were comparable for congruent and incongruent color previews at the pretarget region when the data were combined from both experiments. These results favour serial processing accounts and indicate that even under very favourable experimental conditions, lexical semantic parafoveal-on-foveal effects are minimal. |
Xibo Zuo; Ying Ling; Todd Jackson Testing links between pain-related biases in visual attention and recognition memory: An eye-tracking study based on an impending pain paradigm Journal Article In: Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, vol. 76, no. 5, pp. 1057 –1071, 2023. @article{Zuo2023, Although separate lines of research have evaluated pain-related biases in attention or memory, laboratory studies examining links between attention and memory for pain-related information have received little consideration. In this eye-tracking experiment, we assessed relations between pain-related attention biases (ABs) and recognition memory biases (MBs) among 122 pain-free adults randomly assigned to impending pain (n = 59) versus impending touch (n = 63) conditions, wherein offsets of trials that included pain images were followed by subsequent possibly painful and non-painful somatosensory stimulation, respectively. Gaze biases of participants were assessed during presentations of pain-neutral (P-N) and happy-neutral (H-N) face image pairs within these conditions. Subsequently, condition differences in recognition accuracy for previously viewed versus novel pained and happy face images were examined. Overall gaze durations were significantly longer for pain (vs. neutral) faces that signalled impending pain than impending non-painful touch, particularly among the less resilient in the former condition. Impending pain cohorts also exhibited comparatively better recognition accuracy for both pained and happy face images. Finally, longer gaze durations on pain faces that signalled potential pain, but not potential touch, were related to more accurate recognition of previously viewed pain faces. In sum, pain cues that signal potential personal discomfort maintain visual attention more fully and are subsequently recognised more accuracy than are pain cues that signal non-painful touch stimulation. |
Carolin Zsigo; Lisa Feldmann; Frans Oort; Charlotte Piechaczek; Jürgen Bartling; Martin Schulte-Rüther; Christian Wachinger; Gerd Schulte-Körne; Ellen Greimel Emotion regulation training for adolescents with major depression: Results from a randomized controlled trial Journal Article In: Emotion, pp. 1–18, 2023. @article{Zsigo2023, Difficulties in emotion regulation (ER) are thought to contribute to the development and maintenance of major depression (MD) in adolescents. In healthy adults, a task-based training of ER has previously proven effective to reduce stress, but no such studies are available for MD. It is also unclear whether findings can be generalized onto adolescent populations. The final sample consisted of n = 70 adolescents with MD, who were randomized to a task-based ER training (n = 36) or a control training (n = 34). Across four sessions, the ER group was trained to downregulate negative affect to negative images via reappraisal, while the control group was instructed to attend the images. Rumination, stress-, and affect-related measures were assessed as primary outcomes, behavioral and neurophysiological responses (late positive potential, LPP), as secondary outcomes. The trial was preregistered at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03957850). While there was no significant differential effect of the ER training on primary outcomes, we found small to moderate effects on rumination in the ER group, but not the control group. During reappraisal (compared to attend), the ER group showed an unexpected increase of the LPP during the first, but not during later training sessions. Although replication in large, multicenter trials is needed, our findings on effect sizes suggest that ER training might be promising to decrease rumination in adolescent MD. The LPP increase at the first session may represent cognitive effort, which was successfully reduced over the sessions. Future studies should research whether training effects transfer to daily life and are durable over a longer time period. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved) |
Eirini Zormpa; Antje S. Meyer; Laurel E. Brehm In conversation, answers are remembered better than the questions themselves Journal Article In: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, vol. 49, no. 12, pp. 1971–1988, 2023. @article{Zormpa2023, Language is used in communicative contexts to identify and successfully transmit new information that should be later remembered. In three studies, we used question–answer pairs, a naturalistic device for focus- ing information, to examine how properties of conversations inform later item memory. In Experiment 1, participants viewed three pictures while listening to a recorded question–answer exchange between two peo- ple about the locations oftwo of the displayed pictures. In a memory recognition test conducted online a day later, participants recognized the names of pictures that served as answers more accurately than the names of pictures that appeared as questions. This suggests that this type of focus indeed boosts memory. In Experiment 2, participants listened to the same items embedded in declarative sentences. There was a reduced memory benefit for the second item, confirming the role of linguistic focus on later memory beyond a simple serial-position effect. In Experiment 3, two participants asked and answered the same questions about objects in a dialogue. Here, answers continued to receive a memory benefit, and this focus effect was accentuated by language production such that information-seekers remembered the answers to their questions better than information-givers remembered the questions they had been asked. Combined, these studies show how people's memory for conversation is modulated by the referential status of the items men- tioned and by the speaker's roles of the conversation participants. |
Feriel Zoghlami; Matteo Toscani Foveal to peripheral extrapolation of facial emotion Journal Article In: Perception, vol. 52, no. 7, pp. 514–523, 2023. @article{Zoghlami2023, Peripheral vision is characterized by poor resolution. Recent evidence from brightness perception suggests that missing information is filled out with information at fixation. Here we show a novel filling-out mechanism: when participants are presented with a crowd of faces, the perceived emotion of faces in peripheral vision is biased towards the emotion of the face at fixation. This mechanism is particularly important in social situations where people often need to perceive the overall mood of a crowd. Some faces in the crowd are more likely to catch people's attention and be looked at directly, while others are only seen peripherally. Our findings suggest that the perceived emotion of these peripheral faces, and the overall perceived mood of the crowd, is biased by the emotions of the faces that people look at directly. |
Anastasia A. Ziubanova; Anna K. Laurinavichyute; Olga Parshina Does early exposure to spoken and sign language affect reading fluency in deaf and hard-of-hearing adult signers? Journal Article In: Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 14, pp. 1–9, 2023. @article{Ziubanova2023, Introduction: Early linguistic background, and in particular, access to language, lays the foundation of future reading skills in deaf and hard-of-hearing signers. The current study aims to estimate the impact of two factors – early access to sign and/or spoken language – on reading fluency in deaf and hard-of-hearing adult Russian Sign Language speakers. Methods: In the eye-tracking experiment, 26 deaf and 14 hard-of-hearing native Russian Sign Language speakers read 144 sentences from the Russian Sentence Corpus. Analysis of global eye-movement trajectories (scanpaths) was used to identify clusters of typical reading trajectories. The role of early access to sign and spoken language as well as vocabulary size as predictors of the more fluent reading pattern was tested. Results: Hard-of-hearing signers with early access to sign language read more fluently than those who were exposed to sign language later in life or deaf signers without access to speech sounds. No association between early access to spoken language and reading fluency was found. Discussion: Our results suggest a unique advantage for the hard-of-hearing individuals from having early access to both sign and spoken language and support the existing claims that early exposure to sign language is beneficial not only for deaf but also for hard-of-hearing children. |
Artyom Zinchenko; Markus Conci; Hermann J. Müller; Thomas Geyer Environmental regularities mitigate attentional misguidance in contextual cueing of visual search Journal Article In: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, pp. 1–13, 2023. @article{Zinchenko2023, Visual search is faster when a fixed target location is paired with a spatially invariant (vs. randomly changing) distractor configuration, thus indicating that repeated contexts are learned, thereby guiding attention to the target (contextual cueing [CC]). Evidence for memory-guided attention has also been revealed with electrophysiological (electroencephalographic [EEG]) recordings, starting with an enhanced early posterior neg- ativity (N1pc), which signals a preattentive bias toward the target, and, subsequently, attentional and postselective components, such as the posterior contralateral negativity (PCN) and contralateral delay activ- ity (CDA), respectively. Despite effective learning, relearning of previously acquired contexts is inflexible: The CC benefits disappear when the target is relocated to a new position within an otherwise invariant context and corresponding EEG correlates are diminished. The present study tested whether global statistical properties that induce predictions going beyond the immediate invariant layout can facilitate contextual relearning. Global statistical regularities were implemented by presenting repeated and nonrepeated displays in separate streaks (mini blocks) of trials in the relocation phase, with individual displays being presented in a fixed and thus predictable order. Our results revealed a significant CC effect (and an associated modulation of the N1pc, PCN, and CDA components) during initial learning. Critically, the global statistical regularities in the relocation phase also resulted in a reliable CC effect, thus revealing effective relearning with predictive streaks. Moreover, this relearning was reflected in an enhanced PCN amplitude for repeated relative to non- repeated contexts. Temporally ordered contexts may thus adapt memory-based guidance of attention, par- ticularly the allocation of covert attention in the visual display. |
Laoura Ziaka; Athanassios Protopapas Cognitive control beyond single-item tasks: insights from pupillometry, gaze, and behavioral measures Journal Article In: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, vol. 49, no. 7, pp. 968–988, 2023. @article{Ziaka2023, Cognitive control has been typically examined using single-item tasks. This has implications for the generalizability of theories of control implementation. Previous studies have revealed that different control demands are posed by tasks depending on whether they present stimuli individually (i.e., single-item) or simultaneously in array format (i.e., multi-item). In the present study, we tracked within-task performance in single-item and multi-item Stroop tasks using simultaneous pupillometry, gaze, and behavioral response measures, aiming to explore the implications of format differences for cognitive control. The results indicated within-task performance decline in the multi-item version of the Stroop task, accompanied by pupil constriction and dwell time increase, in both the incongruent and the neutral condition. In contrast, no performance decline or dwell time increase was observed in the course of the single-item version of the task.We interpret these findings in terms of capacity constraints on cognitive control, with implications for cognitive control research, and highlight the need for better understanding of the cognitive demands of multi-item tasks. |
Xi Zhu; Amit Lazarov; Sarah Dolan; Yair Bar-Haim; Daniel G. Dillon; Diego A. Pizzagalli; Franklin Schneier Resting state connectivity predictors of symptom change during gaze-contingent music reward therapy of social anxiety disorder Journal Article In: Psychological Medicine, vol. 53, no. 7, pp. 3115–3123, 2023. @article{Zhu2023a, Background Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is common, first-line treatments are often only partially effective, and reliable predictors of treatment response are lacking. Here, we assessed resting state functional connectivity (rsFC) at pre-treatment and during early treatment as a potential predictor of response to a novel attention bias modification procedure, gaze-contingent music reward therapy (GC-MRT). Methods Thirty-two adults with SAD were treated with GC-MRT. rsFC was assessed with multi-voxel pattern analysis of fMRI at pre-treatment and after 2-3 weeks. For comparison, 20 healthy control (HC) participants without treatment were assessed twice for rsFC over the same time period. All SAD participants underwent clinical evaluation at pre-treatment, early-treatment (week 2-3), and post-treatment. Results SAD and depressive symptoms improved significantly from pre-treatment to post-treatment. After 2-3 weeks of treatment, decreased connectivity between the executive control network (ECN) and salience network (SN), and increased connectivity within the ECN predicted improvement in SAD and depressive symptoms at week 8. Increased connectivity between the ECN and default mode network (DMN) predicted greater improvement in SAD but not depressive symptoms at week 8. Connectivity within the DMN decreased significantly after 2-3 weeks of treatment in the SAD group, while no changes were found in HC over the same time interval. Conclusion We identified early changes in rsFC during a course of GC-MRT for SAD that predicted symptom change. Connectivity changes within the ECN, ECN-DMN, and ECN-SN may be related to mechanisms underlying the clinical effects of GC-MRT and warrant further study in controlled trials. |
Dandan Zhu; Xuan Shao; Qiangqiang Zhou; Xiongkuo Min; Guangtao Zhai; Xiaokang Yang A novel lightweight audio-visual saliency model for videos Journal Article In: ACM Transactions on Multimedia Computing, Communications and Applications, vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 1–22, 2023. @article{Zhu2023, Audio information has not been considered an important factor in visual attention models regardless of many psychological studies that have shown the importance of audio information in the human visual perception system. Since existing visual attention models only utilize visual information, their performance is limited but also requires high-computational complexity due to the limited information available. To overcome these problems, we propose a lightweight audio-visual saliency (LAVS) model for video sequences. To the best of our knowledge, this article is the first trial to utilize audio cues for an efficient deep-learning model for the video saliency estimation. First, spatial-temporal visual features are extracted by the lightweight receptive field block (RFB) with the bidirectional ConvLSTM units. Then, audio features are extracted by using an improved lightweight environment sound classification model. Subsequently, deep canonical correlation analysis (DCCA) aims at capturing the correspondence between audio and spatial-temporal visual features, thus obtaining a spatial-temporal auditory saliency. Lastly, the spatial-temporal visual and auditory saliency are fused to obtain the audio-visual saliency map. Extensive comparative experiments and ablation studies validate the performance of the LAVS model in terms of effectiveness and complexity. |
Ying Joey Zhou; Aarti Ramchandran; Saskia Haegens Alpha oscillations protect working memory against distracters in a modality-specific way Journal Article In: NeuroImage, vol. 278, pp. 1–9, 2023. @article{Zhou2023d, Alpha oscillations are thought to be involved in suppressing distracting input in working-memory tasks. Yet, the spatial-temporal dynamics of such suppression remain unclear. Key questions are whether such suppression reflects a domain-general inattentiveness mechanism, or occurs in a stimulus- or modality-specific manner within cortical areas most responsive to the distracters; and whether the suppression is proactive (i.e., preparatory) or reactive. Here, we addressed these questions using a working-memory task where participants had to memorize an array of visually presented digits and reproduce one of them upon being probed. We manipulated the presence of distracters and the sensory modality in which distracters were presented during memory maintenance. Our results show that sensory areas most responsive to visual and auditory distracters exhibited stronger alpha power increase after visual and auditory distracter presentation respectively. These results suggest that alpha oscillations underlie distracter suppression in a reactive, modality-specific manner. |
Yang Zhou; Ou Zhu; David J. Freedman Posterior parietal cortex plays a causal role in abstract memory-based visual categorical decisions Journal Article In: Journal of Neuroscience, vol. 43, no. 23, pp. 4315–4328, 2023. @article{Zhou2023c, Neural activity in the lateral intraparietal cortex (LIP) correlates with both sensory evaluation and motor planning underlying visuomotor decisions. We previously showed that LIP plays a causal role in visually-based perceptual and categorical decisions, and preferentially contributes to evaluating sensory stimuli over motor planning. In that study, however, monkeys reported their decisions with a saccade to a colored target associated with the correct motion category or direction. Since LIP is known to play a role in saccade planning, it remains unclear whether LIP's causal role in such decisions extend to decision-making tasks which do not involve saccades. Here, we employed reversible pharmacological inactivation of LIP neural activity while two male monkeys performed delayed match to category (DMC) and delayed match to sample (DMS) tasks. In both tasks, monkeys needed to maintain gaze fixation throughout the trial and report whether a test stimulus was a categorical match or nonmatch to the previous sample stimulus by releasing a touch bar. LIP inactivation impaired monkeys' behavioral performance in both tasks, with deficits in both accuracy and reaction time (RT). Furthermore, we recorded LIP neural activity in the DMC task targeting the same cortical locations as in the inactivation experiments. We found significant neural encoding of the sample category, which was correlated with monkeys' categorical decisions in the DMC task. Taken together, our results demonstrate that LIP plays a generalized role in visual categorical decisions independent of the task-structure and motor response modality. |
Xing Zhou; Yuxiang Hao; Shuangxing Xu; Qi Zhang Statistical learning of target location and distractor location rely on different mechanisms during visual search Journal Article In: Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, vol. 85, no. 2, pp. 342–365, 2023. @article{Zhou2023g, More studies have demonstrated that people have the capacity to learn and make use of environmental regularities. This capacity is known as statistical learning (SL). Despite rich empirical findings, it is not clear how the two forms of SL (SL of target location and SL of distractor location) influence visual search and whether they rely on the shared cognitive mechanism. In Experiment 1 and Experiment 2, we manipulated the probability of target location and the probability of distractor location, respectively. The results suggest that attentional guidance (they referred to overt attention) may mainly contribute to the SL effect of the target location and the distractor location, which is in line with the notion of priority mapping. To a small extent, facilitation of response selection may also contribute to the SL effect of the target location but does not contribute to the SL effect of the distractor location. However, the main difference between the two kinds of SL occurred in the early stage (it involved covert attention). Together, our findings indicate that the two forms of SL reflect partly shared and partly independent cognitive mechanisms. |
Wei Zhou; Sile Wang; Ming Yan Fixation-related fMRI analysis reveals the neural basis of natural reading of unspaced and spaced Chinese sentences Journal Article In: Cerebral Cortex, vol. 33, no. 19, pp. 10401–10410, 2023. @article{Zhou2023b, Although there are many eye-movement studies focusing on natural sentence reading and functional magnetic resonance imaging research on reading with serial visual presentation paradigms, there is a scarcity of investigations into the neural mechanism of natural sentence reading. The present study recruited 33 adults to read unspaced and spaced Chinese sentences with the eye tracking and functional magnetic resonance imaging data recorded simultaneously. By using fixation-related functional magnetic resonance imaging analysis, this study showed that natural reading of Chinese sentences produced activations in ventral visual, dorsal attention, and semantic brain regions, which were modulated by the properties of words such as word length and word frequency. The multivoxel pattern analysis showed that the activity pattern in the left middle temporal gyrus could significantly predict the visual layout categories (i.e. unspaced vs. spaced conditions). Dynamic causal modeling analysis showed that there were bidirectional brain connections between the left middle temporal gyrus and the left inferior occipital cortex in the unspaced Chinese sentence reading but not in the spaced reading. These results provide a neural mechanism for the natural reading of Chinese sentences from the perspective of word segmentation. |
Wei Zhou; Yi Fan; Yulin Chang; Wenjuan Liu; Jiuju Wang; Yufeng Wang Pathogenesis of comorbid adhd and chinese developmental dyslexia: Evidence from eye-movement tracking and rapid automatized naming Journal Article In: Journal of Attention Disorders, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 294–306, 2023. @article{Zhou2023f, Background: ADHD and Chinese developmental dyslexia (DD) have a very high comorbidity rate; however, which cognitive deficits characterize the comorbidity and when they occur during cognitive processing are still under debate. Methods: Rapid automatic naming (RAN) tasks with eye-movement tracking were conducted with 75 children who were typically developing, had comorbid ADHD and DD, had only ADHD, and had only DD. Results: The clinical groups had longer first fixation durations than the control for RAN digits. Temporal eye-movement measures, such as gaze duration and total reading time, were found to vary between the comorbidity and ADHD groups. Spatial eye-movement measures, such as regression probability and incoming saccade amplitude, differed between the comorbidity and DD groups. Conclusions: These results indicate that investigation with eye-movement measures combined with RAN tasks can strengthen the understanding of the pathogenesis of comorbid ADHD and DD. |
Peng Zhou; Huimin Ma; Bochao Zou; Xiaowen Zhang; Shuyan Zhao; Yuxin Lin; Yidong Wang; Lei Feng; Gang Wang A conceptual framework of cognitive-affective theory of mind: Towards a precision identification of mental disorders Journal Article In: npj Mental Health Research, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 1–11, 2023. @article{Zhou2023a, To explore the minds of others, which is traditionally referred to as Theory of Mind (ToM), is perhaps the most fundamental ability of humans as social beings. Impairments in ToM could lead to difficulties or even deficits in social interaction. The present study focuses on two core components of ToM, the ability to infer others' beliefs and the ability to infer others' emotions, which we refer to as cognitive and affective ToM respectively. Charting both typical and atypical trajectories underlying the cognitive-affective ToM promises to shed light on the precision identification of mental disorders, such as depressive disorders (DD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, most prior studies failed to capture the underlying processes involved in the cognitive-affective ToM in a fine-grained manner. To address this problem, we propose an innovative conceptual framework, referred to as visual theory of mind (V-ToM), by constructing visual scenes with emotional and cognitive meanings and by depicting explicitly a four-stage process of how humans make inferences about the beliefs and emotions of others. Through recording individuals' eye movements while looking at the visual scenes, our model enables us to accurately measure each stage involved in the computation of cognitive-affective ToM, thereby allowing us to infer about potential difficulties that might occur in each stage. Our model is based on a large sample size ( n > 700) and a novel audio-visual paradigm using visual scenes containing cognitive-emotional meanings. Here we report the obtained differential features among healthy controls, DD and ASD individuals that overcome the subjectivity of conventional questionnaire-based assessment, and therefore could serve as valuable references for mental health applications based on AI-aided digital medicine. |
Junyi Zhou; Wenjie Zhuang Physically active undergraduates perform better on executive-related oculomotor control: Evidence from the antisaccade task and pupillometry Journal Article In: PsyCh Journal, vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 17–24, 2023. @article{Zhou2023e, Previous studies have shown that exercise can improve executive function in young and older adults. However, it remains controversial whether a sufficient amount of physical activity leads to higher-level executive function. To examine the effect of physical activity on executive function, we used eye-tracking technology and the antisaccade task in 41 young undergraduates with various levels of physical activity. Moreover, we also investigated their differences in cognitive ability by examining their pupil size during the antisaccade task. Eye-tracking results showed that physically active individuals showed shorter saccade latency and higher accuracy in the antisaccade task than their physically inactive counterparts. Furthermore, the former showed larger pupil size during the preparatory period of antisaccade. These findings suggest that individuals with higher-level physical activity have higher-level executive function. The larger pupil sizes of physically active individuals may imply that their locus coeruleus-norepinephrine system and executive-related prefrontal cortex are more active, which contributes to their higher-level cognitive ability. |
Junyi Zhou; Zhanshuang Bai In: Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 14, pp. 1–8, 2023. @article{Zhou2023, Introduction: Previous studies have shown that brief moderate-intensity aerobic exercise can improve the executive function of healthy adults. The present study sought to examine and compare the effects of brief moderate-intensity aerobic exercise on the executive functions of undergraduates with and without mobile phone addiction. Method: Thirty-two healthy undergraduates with mobile phone addiction were recruited and randomly assigned to either an exercise or control group. Likewise, 32 healthy undergraduates without mobile phone addiction were recruited and randomly assigned to either an exercise or control group. Participants were asked to perform moderate-intensity aerobic exercise for 15 minutes for the exercise groups. The executive functions of all participants were assessed via the antisaccade task twice (i.e., pre-test and post-test). Results: The results showed that the saccade latency, variability of saccade latency, and error rate decreased significantly from pre-test to post-test for all participants. More importantly, after the 15-min moderate-intensity aerobic exercise intervention, participants in the exercise groups showed significantly shorter saccade latency than their counterparts in the control groups, regardless of whether they are with mobile phone addiction. Discussion: This result is consistent with previous studies demonstrating that brief moderate-intensity aerobic exercise can improve one's executive function. Furthermore, the absence of significant interaction among Time, Group, and Intervention implies that the effects of brief moderate-intensity aerobic exercise on executive function are comparable between participants with and without mobile phone addiction. The present study supports the previous conclusion that brief moderate-intensity aerobic exercise can improve one's executive function effectively, and extends it to the population with mobile phone addiction. In summary, the present study has some implications for understanding of the relationship between exercise, executive function, and mobile phone addiction. |
Alexander Zhigalov; Ole Jensen Perceptual echoes as travelling waves may arise from two discrete neuronal sources Journal Article In: NeuroImage, vol. 272, pp. 1–9, 2023. @article{Zhigalov2023, Growing evidence suggests that travelling waves are functionally relevant for cognitive operations in the brain. Several electroencephalography (EEG) studies report on a perceptual alpha-echo, representing the brain response to a random visual flicker, propagating as a travelling wave across the cortical surface. In this study, we ask if the propagating activity of the alpha-echo is best explained by a set of discrete sources mixing at the sensor level rather than a cortical travelling wave. To this end, we presented participants with gratings modulated by random noise and simultaneously acquired the ongoing MEG. The perceptual alpha-echo was estimated using the temporal response function linking the visual input to the brain response. At the group level, we observed a spatial decay of the amplitude of the alpha-echo with respect to the sensor where the alpha-echo was the largest. Importantly, the propagation latencies consistently increased with the distance. Interestingly, the propagation of the alpha-echoes was predominantly centro-lateral, while EEG studies reported mainly posterior-frontal propagation. Moreover, the propagation speed of the alpha-echoes derived from the MEG data was around 10 m/s, which is higher compared to the 2 m/s reported in EEG studies. Using source modelling, we found an early component in the primary visual cortex and a phase-lagged late component in the parietal cortex, which may underlie the travelling alpha-echoes at the sensor level. We then simulated the alpha-echoes using realistic EEG and MEG forward models by placing two sources in the parietal and occipital cortices in accordance with our empirical findings. The two-source model could account for both the direction and speed of the observed alpha-echoes in the EEG and MEG data. Our results demonstrate that the propagation of the perceptual echoes observed in EEG and MEG data can be explained by two sources mixing at the scalp level equally well as by a cortical travelling wave. Importantly, these findings should not be directly extrapolated to intracortical recordings, where travelling waves gradually propagate at a sub-millimetre scale. |
Yueyuan Zheng; Janet H. Hsiao Differential audiovisual information processing in emotion recognition: An eye-tracking study Journal Article In: Emotion, vol. 23, no. 4, pp. 1028–1039, 2023. @article{Zheng2023a, Recent research has suggested that dynamic emotion recognition involves strong audiovisual association; that is, facial or vocal information alone automatically induces perceptual processes in the other modality. We hypothesized that different emotions may differ in the automaticity of audiovisual association, resulting in differential audiovisual information processing. Participants judged the emotion of a talking-head video under audiovisual, video-only (with no sound), and audio-only (with a static neutral face) conditions. Among the six basic emotions, disgust had the largest audiovisual advantage over the unimodal conditions in recognition accuracy. In addition, in the recognition of all the emotions except for disgust, participants' eye-movement patterns did not change significantly across the three conditions, suggesting mandatory audiovisual information processing. In contrast, in disgust recognition, participants' eye movements in the audiovisual condition were less eyes-focused than the video-only condition and more eyes-focused than the audio-only condition, suggesting that audio information in the audiovisual condition interfered with eye-movement planning for important features (eyes) for disgust. In addition, those whose eye-movement pattern was affected less by concurrent disgusted voice information benefited more in recognition accuracy. Disgust recognition is learned later in life and thus may involve a reduced amount of audiovisual associative learning. Consequently, audiovisual association in disgust recognition is less automatic and demands more attentional resources than other emotions. Thus, audiovisual information processing in emotion recognition depends on the automaticity of audiovisual association of the emotion resulting from associative learning. This finding has important implications for real-life emotion recognition and multimodal learning. |
Wei Zheng; Xiaolu Wang Humor experience facilitates ongoing cognitive tasks: Evidence from pun comprehension Journal Article In: Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 14, pp. 1–9, 2023. @article{Zheng2023, Empirical findings on embodied cognition have shown that bodily states (e.g., bodily postures and affective states) can influence how people appreciate humor. A case in point is that participants were reported to read pleasant sentences faster than the unpleasant controls when their muscles responsible for smiling were activated. However, little research has examined whether the feeling of amusement derived from humor processing like pun comprehension can exert a backward influence on ongoing cognitive tasks. In the present study, the participants' eye movements were tracked while they rated the comprehensibility of humorous sentences (homophone puns) and two types of unfunny control sentences (congruent and incongruent). Fixation measures showed an advantage in the critical homophone region for the congruent controls relative to the homophone puns; however, this pattern was reversed in terms of total sentence reading time. In addition, the humor rating scores acquired after the eye-tracking experiment were found negatively correlated to the overall sentence reading time, suggesting that the greater amusement the participant experienced the faster they would finish the rating task. Taken together, the current results indicate that the positive affect derived from humor can in turn provide immediate feedback to the cognitive system, which enhances text comprehension. As a result, the current finding provides more empirical evidence for the exploration of the interaction between the body and cognition. |
Ziyue Zhao; Wei Su; Juan Hou The influence of resource-gaining capacity on mate preferences: An eye tracking study Journal Article In: BMC Psychology, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 1–13, 2023. @article{Zhao2023b, To investigate whether resource-gaining capacity influences mate preferences, explicit (self-report data) and implicit tasks (eye tracking data) were used to explore whether individuals' resource-gaining capacity influences mate preferences and whether there are sex differences in mate preferences under two different conditions (short-term and long-term strategies). A total of 59 college students completed a questionnaire collecting basic demographic information, the Resource-Gaining Capacity Scale and the two above tasks. The results showed that (1) in the short-term mating, individuals with higher resource-gaining capacity paid more attention to “good parent” than those with lower resource-gaining capacity, while individuals with lower resource-gaining capacity preferred “good provider” than those with higher resource-gaining capacity. (2) In the long-term mating, women valued “good provider” traits more than men, and they paid more attention to “good parent” traits than men in the short-term. In addition, no matter in the short-term or the long-term mating, men placed more value on “good genes” traits than women. (3) Compared with long-term mating, individuals of both sexes had preferences based on “good genes” in short-term mating, while they had preferences based on “good parent” and “good provider” in long-term mating compared with short-term mating. (4) Regarding explicit mate selection, “good parent” traits were most preferred by the participants, while the implicit eye tracking data indicated that participants preferred partners who were “good providers” and had “good genes”. |
Zitong Zhao; Jinfeng Ding; Jiayu Wang; Yiya Chen; Xiaoqing Li The flexibility and representational nature of phonological prediction in listening comprehension: Evidence from the visual world paradigm Journal Article In: Language and Cognition, pp. 1–24, 2023. @article{Zhao2023a, Using the visual world paradigm with printed words, this study investigated the flexibility and representational nature of phonological prediction in real-time speech processing. Native speakers of Mandarin Chinese listened to spoken sentences containing highly predictable target words and viewed a visual array with a critical word and a distractor word on the screen. The critical word was manipulated in four ways: a highly predictable target word, a homophone competitor, a tonal competitor, or an unrelated word. Participants showed a preference for fixating on the homophone competitors before hearing the highly predictable target word. The predicted phonological information waned shortly but was re-activated later around the acoustic onset of the target word. Importantly, this homophone bias was observed only when participants were completing a 'pronunciation judgement' task, but not when they were completing a 'word judgement' task. No effect was found for the tonal competitors. The task modulation effect, combined with the temporal pattern of phonological pre-activation, indicates that phonological prediction can be flexibly generated by top-down mechanisms. The lack of tonal competitor effect suggests that phonological features such as lexical tone are not independently predicted for anticipatory speech processing. |
Bin Zhao; Gaoyan Zhang; Longbiao Wang; Jianwu Dang Multimodal evidence for predictive coding in sentence oral reading Journal Article In: Cerebral Cortex, vol. 33, no. 13, pp. 8620–8632, 2023. @article{Zhao2023, Sentence oral reading requires not only a coordinated effort in the visual, articulatory, and cognitive processes but also supposes a top-down influence from linguistic knowledge onto the visual-motor behavior. Despite a gradual recognition of a predictive coding effect in this process, there is currently a lack of a comprehensive demonstration regarding the time-varying brain dynamics that underlines the oral reading strategy. To address this, our study used a multimodal approach, combining real-time recording of electroencephalography, eye movements, and speech, with a comprehensive examination of regional, inter-regional, sub-network, and whole-brain responses. Our study identified the top-down predictive effect with a phrase-grouping phenomenon in the fixation interval and eye-voice span. This effect was associated with the delta and theta band synchronization in the prefrontal, anterior temporal, and inferior frontal lobes. We also observed early activation of the cognitive control network and its recurrent interactions with the visual-motor networks structurally at the phrase rate. Finally, our study emphasizes the importance of cross-frequency coupling as a promising neural realization of hierarchical sentence structuring and calls for further investigation. |
Ziyao Zhang; Nancy B. Carlisle Assessing recoding accounts of negative attentional templates using behavior and eye tracking Journal Article In: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, vol. 49, no. 4, pp. 509–532, 2023. @article{Zhang2023h, Can we use attentional control to ignore known distractor features? Providing cues before a visual search trial about an upcoming distractor color (negative cue) can lead to reaction time benefits compared with no cue trials. This suggests top-down control may use negative templates to actively suppress distractor features, a notion that challenges the mechanisms of top-down control provided in many theories of attention. However, there is currently mixed support for this mechanism in the literature. Alternative explanations have been proposed, which do not require suppression within top-down control but instead involve recoding the negative cue into a positive template based on color or spatial layouts. In three experiments, we contrasted the predictions of active suppression and the recoding strategies. Across experiments, we found consistent evidence against a color recoding account. We also found evidence of accuracy, reaction time, and eye movement benefits when location recoding was not possible. These results suggest that prior benefits from negative cues cannot be explained exclusively by spatial or color recoding. The results indicate that active suppression likely plays a role in the attentional benefits following negative cues. |
Yuyang Zhang; Jing Yang; Zhisheng Edward Wen Learners with low working memory capacity benefit more from the presence of an instructor 's face in video lectures Journal Article In: Journal of Intelligence, vol. 11, no. 5, pp. 1–14, 2023. @article{Zhang2023, This current study explores the influence of learners' working memory capacity (WMC) on the facilitation effect of an instructor's presence during video lectures. Sixty-four undergraduates were classified into high and low WMC groups based on their performance in an operation span task. They watched three types of video lectures on unfamiliar topics in a random order: video lectures with an instructor's voiceover but without presence (VN), video lectures with the instructor's face picture (VP), and video lectures with the same instructor talking (VV). We collected their eye movement data during the video lectures and their learning performance in the comprehension tests following each video. Two-way ANOVA and post-hoc analyses showed that the instructor's presence significantly improved comprehension performance in only the low WMC group. They allocated more attention to the instructor's face picture and talking head than the high WMC group. Our results highlight the value of the instructor's presence as a social cue in video lectures, which is particularly beneficial for learners with a low WMC. |
Yili Zhang; Tengfei Wang; Menglei Chen; Hai Lou; Jiangchuan Ye; Jiahui Shi; Xu Wen Effects of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise on cognitive fatigue relief: A randomised self-controlled study Journal Article In: International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, pp. 1–19, 2023. @article{Zhang2023g, Although it was reported both rest and physical activity can alleviate cognitive fatigue to some extent, there is no direct scientific evidence determining which approach is more effective. This study aimed to investigate the effect of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise on the alleviation of cognitive fatigue. A 30-min TloadDback task was used to induce cognitive fatigue in 20 healthy adults, and 12-min quiet rest and moderate-intensity aerobic exercise were performed in random order. During the cognitive task, standard deviation of the NN interval (SDNN), total frequency (TP, 0–0.4 Hz) and very low frequency (VLF, 0–0.15 Hz) of heart rate variability increased significantly. The blink duration and number, fixation number, saccade amplitude and number increased significantly with time, while fixation duration and pupil size decreased significantly. After 12-min intervention protocols, the participants' feeling of fatigue, vigour and boredom recovered significantly. The recovery of fixation duration was better after quiet rest, while the pupil size was significantly larger after aerobic exercise. It was found that both quiet rest and aerobic exercise can alleviate cognitive fatigue, but aerobic exercise may be more effective in the recovery of arousal levels. |
Yi Zhang; Ke Xu; Yun Pan; Zhongling Pi; Jiumin Yang The effects of segmentation design and drawing on video learning: A mediation analysis Journal Article In: Active Learning in Higher Education, pp. 1–21, 2023. @article{Zhang2023f, The current study investigated the effects of segmentation design and drawing on college students' video learning. Participants were 158 college students randomly assigned to view either a segmented or continuous video lecture (video type: segmented vs continuous) and who either received instructed to draw while learning or no instructions at all (learning strategy: drawing vs passive viewing). Participants' eye movements were recorded as they viewed the video, and data was collected regarding their learning satisfaction, cognitive load, both immediate and 7-day delayed learning outcomes, and their perceptions regarding the instructional efficiency of the lectures. The results showed that the drawing activity moderated the segmentation effect in that students did not benefit from the segmented video design when viewing passively, but did when required to draw while viewing. Furthermore, the positive effect of segmentation was mediated by drawing accuracy. |
Yi Zhang; Caixia Liu; Yana Xing; Zhongling Pi; Jiumin Yang How does drawing influence the effectiveness of oral self-explanation versus instructional explanation in video learning? Journal Article In: British Journal of Educational Technology, pp. 1–20, 2023. @article{Zhang2023e, This study investigated the effects of two types of oral explanations (ie, self-explanation vs. instructional explanation) and drawing activity (no drawing vs. drawing) on video learning outcomes. These outcomes were measured by visual attention to the video (indexed by fixation time on text and diagram areas), explanation quality (indexed by personal references, concepts, and elaborations), drawing quality, behaviour patterns and overall learning performance gain. A total of 116 undergraduate and graduate students watched a 4-min video on the human body's respiratory system. They were randomly assigned to one of four conditions (explanation generation: self-explanation vs. instructional explanation × drawing activity: no drawing vs. drawing). Results indicated that without a drawing requirement, students in the self-explanation condition displayed fewer personal references and exhibited a lower learning performance gain than those in the instructional explanation condition. Conversely, when drawing was required, self-explanation students demonstrated higher drawing quality and better learning performance gain. Additionally, students in the drawing condition directed more attention to the diagram area than those in the no drawing condition. These findings suggest that in video learning (1) educators should encourage students to produce oral instructional explanations and (2) if the goal is for students to generate self-explanations, they should also be prompted to draw to bolster their self-explanation efforts. |
Songzhu Zhang In: Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, vol. 52, no. 6, pp. 2919–2935, 2023. @article{Zhang2023d, This study is based on an experimental method of eye-tracking to investigate how translators perceive and understand translated literary texts and how different stylistic features influence their perception. This methodology allowed us to observe which parts of the text translators focused on the most, providing valuable data on their reading patterns and cognitive processes. Among English-Chinese translators, 95 out of 120 participants (79%) showed a tendency to prioritize faithfully conveying the source text's meaning over crafting a target text that aligns with Chinese stylistically. In the specific context of Chinese-English translation out of the 120 instances examined, the translators exhibited a reduced fixation duration on words in the source language, accounting for 34 instances (28%). This suggests a greater concern for preserving the source text's meaning rather than adapting it to the target culture. This research can assist translators and linguists in translating the stylistic features of English and Chinese literary texts more effectively. Future studies can explore other language stylistic features that may impact translation and compare translation styles across various literary genres and language pairs. |
Qiong Zhang; Weifeng Sun; Kailing Huang; Li Qin; Shirui Wen; Xiaoyan Long; Quan Wang; Li Feng Frontal lobe epilepsy: An eye tracking study of memory and attention Journal Article In: Frontiers in Neuroscience, vol. 17, pp. 1–11, 2023. @article{Zhang2023c, Objective: To explore the characteristics and mechanisms of working memory impairment in patients with frontal lobe epilepsy (FLE) through a memory game paradigm combined with eye tracking technology. Method: We included 44 patients with FLE and 50 healthy controls (HC). All participants completed a series of neuropsychological scale assessments and a short-term memory game on an automated computer-based memory evaluation platform with an eye tracker. Results: Memory scale scores of FLE patients including digit span (U = 747.50 |
Ling Zhang; Naiqing Song; Guowei Wu; Jinfa Cai Understanding the cognitive processes of mathematical problem posing: Evidence from eye movements Journal Article In: Educational Studies in Mathematics, pp. 1–30, 2023. @article{Zhang2023b, This study concerns the cognitive process of mathematical problem posing, conceptualized in three stages: understanding the task, constructing the problem, and expressing the problem. We used the eye tracker and think-aloud methods to deeply explore students' behavior in these three stages of problem posing, especially focusing on investigating the influence of task situation format and mathematical maturity on students' thinking. The study was conducted using a 2 × 2 mixed design: task situation format (with or without specific numerical information) × subject category (master's students or sixth graders). Regarding the task situation format, students' performance on tasks with numbers was found to be significantly better than that on tasks without numbers, which was reflected in the metrics of how well they understood the task and the complexity and clarity of the posed problems. In particular, students spent more fixation duration on understanding and processing the information in tasks without numbers; they had a longer fixation duration on parts involving presenting uncertain numerical information; in addition, the task situation format with or without numbers had an effect on students' selection and processing of information related to the numbers, elements, and relationships rather than information regarding the context presented in the task. Regarding the subject category, we found that mathematical maturity did not predict the quantity of problems posed on either type of task. There was no significant main group difference found in the eye-movement metrics. |
Lijuan Zhang; Zhiwei Liu; Sainan Zhao; Jingxin Wang Semantic plausibility preferentially affects the semantic preview benefit in Chinese reading: Evidence from an eye-movement study Journal Article In: PeerJ, vol. 11, pp. 1–17, 2023. @article{Zhang2023a, Background: Numerous studies have confirmed that skilled readers can benefit from a semantically related preview word (i.e., semantic preview benefit, SPB), suggesting that readers can extract semantic information from the parafovea to achieve efficient reading. It is still under debate whether the occurrence of this benefit is because of the semantic association between the preview and target words or because of the contextual fit of the preview word in the sentence context. Methods: Two independent factors, preview plausibility (preview plausible/ implausible) and semantic relatedness (semantically related/unrelated), were manipulated, and we further strictly controlled for syntactic plausibility in the present study. Results: The results showed that the first-pass reading times of the target words were significantly shorter in the plausible preview condition than in the implausible preview condition. However, the main effect of semantic relatedness was found only in the gaze duration measure. Discussion: The pattern of results revealed that semantic plausibility affects the semantic preview benefit preferentially in Chinese reading, supporting the contextual fit account. Our findings have implications for a better understanding of parafoveal processing and provide empirical support for the eye-movement control model. |
Dan Zhang; Lihua Xu; Yuou Xie; Xiaochen Tang; Yegang Hu; Xu Liu; Guisen Wu; Zhenying Qian; Yingying Tang; Zhi Liu; Tao Chen; HaiChun Liu; Tianhong Zhang; Jijun Wang Eye movement indices as predictors of conversion to psychosis in individuals at clinical high risk Journal Article In: European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, vol. 273, no. 3, pp. 553–563, 2023. @article{Zhang2023i, Eye movement abnormalities have been established as an “endophenotype” of schizophrenia. However, less is known about the possibility of these abnormalities as biomarkers for psychosis conversion among clinical high risk (CHR) populations. In the present study, 108 CHR individuals and 70 healthy controls (HC) underwent clinical assessments and eye-tracking tests, comprising fixation stability and free-viewing tasks. According to three-year follow-up outcomes, CHR participants were further stratified into CHR-converter (CHR-C; n = 21) and CHR-nonconverter (CHR-NC; n = 87) subgroups. Prediction models were constructed using Cox regression and logistic regression. The CHR-C group showed more saccades of the fixation stability test (no distractor) and a reduced saccade amplitude of the free-viewing test than HC. Moreover, the CHR-NC group exhibited excessive saccades and an increased saccade amplitude of the fixation stability test (no distractor; with distractor) compared with HC. Furthermore, two indices could effectively discriminate CHR-C from CHR-NC with an area under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve of 0.80, including the saccade number of the fixation stability test (no distractor) and the saccade amplitude of the free-viewing test. Combined with negative symptom scores of the Scale of Prodromal Symptoms, the area was 0.81. These findings support that eye movement alterations might emerge before the onset of clinically overt psychosis and could assist in predicting psychosis transition among CHR populations. |
Likan Zhan; Peng Zhou The online processing of hypothetical events Journal Article In: Experimental Psychology, vol. 70, no. 2, pp. 108–117, 2023. @article{Zhan2023, Abstract. A conditional statement If P then Q is formed by combining the two propositions P and Q together with the conditional connective If ··· then ···. When embedded under the conditional connective, the two propositions P and Q describe hypothetical events that are not actualized. It remains unclear when such hypothetical thinking is activated in the real-time comprehension of conditional statements. To tackle this problem, we conducted an eye-tracking experiment using the visual world paradigm. Participants' eye movements on the concurrent image were recorded when they were listening to the auditorily presented conditional statements. Depending on when and what critical information is added into the auditory input, there are four possible temporal slots to observe in the online processing of the conditional statement: the sentential connective If, the antecedent P, the consequent Q, and the processing of the sentence following the conditional. We mainly focused on the first three slots. First, the occurrence of the conditional connective should trigger participants to search in the visual world for the event that could not assign a truth-value to the embedded proposition. Second, if the embedded proposition P can be determined as true by an event, the hypothetical property implied by the connective would prevent the participants from excluding the consideration of other events. The consideration of other events would yield more fixations on the events where the proposition is false. |