Recent studies of eye movements in reading and other information processing tasks, such as music reading, typing, visual search, and scene perception, are reviewed. The major emphasis of the review is on reading as a specific example of cognitive processing. Basic topics discussed with respect to reading are (a) the characteristics of eye movements, (b) the perceptual span, (c) integration of information across saccades, (d) eye movement control, and (e) individual differences (including dyslexia). Similar topics are discussed with respect to the other tasks examined. The basic theme of the review is that eye movement data reflect moment-to-moment cognitive processes in the various tasks examined. Theoretical and practical considerations concerning the use of eye movement data are also discussed.

/pdf/eye-movements-in-reading-and-information-processing-20-years-3z5ay8hdwc.pdf

Eye movements in reading and information processing: 20 years of research.

Attentional control theory is an approach to anxiety and cognition representing a major development of Eysenck and Calvo's (1992) processing efficiency theory. It is assumed that anxiety impairs efficient functioning of the goal-directed attentional system and increases the extent to which processing is influenced by the stimulus-driven attentional system. In addition to decreasing attentional control, anxiety increases attention to threat-related stimuli. Adverse effects of anxiety on processing efficiency depend on two central executive functions involving attentional control: inhibition and shifting. However, anxiety may not impair performance effectiveness (quality of performance) when it leads to the use of compensatory strategies (e.g., enhanced effort; increased use of processing resources). Directions for future research are discussed.

Anxiety and cognitive performance: Attentional control theory.

Seven basic research questions in interpersonal perception are posed concerning issues of consensus, assimilation, reciprocity, accuracy, congruence, assumed similarity and self—other agreement. All questions can be addressed at the individual level, and three at the dyadic level. It is shown how the Social Relations Model can be used to answer the questions.

Interpersonal Perception: A Social Relations Analysis

Research focusing on perceptual-cognitive skill in sport is abundant. However, the existing qualitative syntheses of this research lack the quantitative detail necessary to determine the magnitude of differences between groups of varying levels of skills, thereby limiting the theoretical and practical contribution of this body of literature. We present a meta-analytic review focusing on perceptual-cognitive skill in sport (N = 42 studies, 388 effect sizes) with the primary aim of quantifying expertise differences. Effects were calculated for a variety of dependent measures (i.e., response accuracy, response time, number of visual fixations, visual fixation duration, and quiet eye period) using point-biserial correlation. Results indicated that experts are better than nonexperts in picking up perceptual cues, as revealed by measures of response accuracy and response time. Systematic differences in visual search behaviors were also observed, with experts using fewer fixations of longer duration, including prolonged quiet eye periods, compared with non-experts. Several factors (e.g., sport type, research paradigm employed, and stimulus presentation modality) significantly moderated the relationship between level of expertise and perceptual-cognitive skill. Practical and theoretical implications are presented and suggestions for empirical work are provided.

http://www.castonline.ilstu.edu/smith/405/readings_pdf/expert_rdngs/perc_exp_meta_anal.pdf

Perceptual-cognitive expertise in sport: a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the tests most predictive of falls in community-dwelling older people from a range of visual screening tests (high and low contrast visual acuity, edge contrast sensitivity, depth perception, and visual field size). To determine whether one or more of these visual measures, in association with measures of sensation, strength, reaction time, and balance, can accurately predict falls in this group. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study of 12 months duration. SETTING: Falls and Balance Laboratory, Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute. PARTICIPANTS: 156 community-dwelling men and women age 63 to 90 (mean age 76.5, standard deviation = 5.1). MEASUREMENTS: Screening tests of vision, sensation, strength, reaction time and balance, falls. RESULTS: Of the 148 subjects available at follow-up, 64 (43.2%) reported falling, with 32 (21.7%) reporting multiple falls. Multiple fallers had decreased vision, as indicated by all visual tests, with impaired depth perception, contrast sensitivity, and low-contrast visual acuity being the strongest risk factors. Subjects with good vision in both eyes had the lowest rate of falls, whereas those with good vision in one eye and only moderate or poor vision in the other eye had elevated falling rates-equivalent to those with moderate or poor vision in both eyes. Discriminant analysis revealed that impaired depth perception, slow reaction time, and increased body sway on a compliant surface were significantly and independently associated with falls. These variables correctly classified 76% of the cases, with similar sensitivity and specificity. CONCLUSION: The study findings indicate that impaired vision is an important and independent risk factor for falls. Adequate depth perception and distant-edge-contrast sensitivity, in particular, appear to be important for maintaining balance and detecting and avoiding hazards in the environment.

Visual risk factors for falls in older people.

Joan N. Vickers University of Calgary Gaze behavior of elite basketball athletes was determined as they performed 10 accurate and 10 inaccurate free throws (FTs) to a regulation basket wearing an eye tracker that permitted normal accuracy. Experts (mean FT = 78%) differed significantly from near experts (mean FT = 56%) in having a longer fixation on the target combined with an earlier fixation offset during the shooting action. These results, which depart from current models of near aiming, are tentatively explained using a location-suppression hypothesis. During the early phases of the aiming action, a fixation of long duration is needed on a specific target location. As the aiming action is then performed, vision appears to be a liability and is suppressed. In research on aiming, the coordination of hands and eyes was studied extensively in tasks where the individual moved either the hand or an object controlled by the hand to a near target (Abrams, 1994; Abrams, Meyer, & Kornblum, 1990; Abrams & Pratt, 1993; Carlton, 1981a, 1981b; Keele & Posner, 1968; Prablanc & Pellison, 1990; Zelaznik, Hawkins, & Kisselburgh, 1983). Much less is known about how humans aim an object to a target placed spatially at a distance. Instead of being able to maintain control over the object to the target, all control is lost once the object leaves the aiming hand. A distinction is therefore made between aiming skills to near targets and those to far targets where the individual maintains control only to the point of release. In this study the gaze behavior of elite basketball subjects was analyzed as they performed successful and unsuccess- ful free throws. The free throw is a complex targeting skill that requires the integration of visual information gained through overt shifts of gaze with effector movements that carry out the aiming movement. Schmid and Zambarbieri (1991, p. 229) defined gaze as "the absolute position of the eyes in space and depends on both eye position in orbit and head position in space." According to their model, sensory information is received from the environment, with a vol- untary generating of commands that direct the gaze accord- ing to the goals and intentions of the individual. At the lower levels, the head, body, and oculomotor control sys- tems act as one closely coupled system (Guitton & Voile, 1987; Zangemeister & Stark, 1982). When an individual orients his or her gaze to a far target such as a basketball hoop, the most common movement of the eyes is a sequence of events in which the eyes move prior to the head (Gau- thier, Semmlow, Vercher, Pedrono, & Obrecht, 1991; Guit- The study was funded by a grant from the University of Calgary. I thank the athletes who volunteered for this study and their coach, Donna Rudakis of the University of Calgary and Sandee Greatrex, Sue Forbes, Brian Gaines, Claire Michaels, and Gisela Engels, for their assistance in completing this study. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Joan N. Vickers, Neuro-Motor Psychology Laboratory, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada. Electronic mail may be sent via Internet to vickers@acs.ucalgary.ca. ton V Schmid & Zambarbieri, 1991; Zange- meister & Stark, 1982). Gauthier et al. (1991) explained that the head follows because of its greater inertia, with the eyes localizing the target first and visual discrimination begin- ning immediately and maintained on the target even though the head is moving. The movement of the eyes and head is normally smooth, with the processing of information occur- ring as soon as the eyes stabilize on the target.

https://psycnet.apa.org/journals/xhp/22/2/342.pdf

Visual control when aiming at a far target

Spatio-temporal gaze behaviour patterns were analysed as normal participants wearing a mobile eye tracker approached and stepped over obstacles of varying height in the travel path. We examined the frequency and duration of three types of gaze fixation with respect to the participants' stepping patterns: obstacle fixation (ObsFix); travel fixation (TravFix) (when the gaze is stable and travelling at the speed of whole body) and fixation in the 4-6m region (Fix4-6). During the approach phase to the obstacle, participants fixated on the obstacle for approximately 20% of the travel time. Only Fix4-6 duration was modulated as a function of obstacle height by regulating the frequency and reflected the increased time needed for detection of the small low contrast obstacle in the travel path. Frequency of ObsFix increased significantly as a function of obstacle height and reflected visuo-motor transformation needed for limb elevation control. Participants did not fixate on the obstacle as they were stepping over, but did the planning in the steps before. TravFix duration and frequency was constant while Fix4-6 duration was higher in the step before and step over the obstacle reflecting visual search of the landing area for the lead limb following obstacle avoidance. These results clearly show that obstacle information provided by vision is used in a feed-forward rather than on-line control mode to regulate locomotion. Information about self-motion acquired from optic flow during TravFix can be used to control velocity of locomotion.

Where and when do we look as we approach and step over an obstacle in the travel path

Preface Introduction Visuomotor Coordination Three Categories of Gaze Control The Quiet Eye Summary of Theoretical Orientation Part I. Visual Perception, Cognition, and Action Chapter 1. Visual System, Motor Control, and the Changing Brain Visual System Properties of the Gaze in Space Neural Centers of the Brain Changes in the Brain Chapter 2. Measuring What Athletes See What Do Athletes See? Eye-Tracking Technology Today Visual-Search Paradigm Vision-in-Action Paradigm Interpreting Vision-in-Action Data Chapter 3. Visual Attention and Gaze Control Information-Processing Time What Is Visual Attention? Control of the Gaze and Overt and Covert Attention Visual Attention and Representation of the World Part II. Gaze Control and the Quiet Eye in Sport Chapter 4. Gaze Control Framework Three Categories of Gaze Control Four Factors That Affect Gaze Control Chapter 5. Gaze Control to a Single Fixed Target Has Targeting Contributed to a Bigger Brain? Gaze Control in the Basketball Free Throw Gaze Control in the Jump Shot Quiet Eye in the Free Throw and Jump Shot Quiet-Eye Training in Basketball Shooting Quiet Eye and EEG in Rifle Shooting Quiet Eye in Biathlon Shooting Under Pressure Chapter 6. Gaze Control in Abstract-Target and Moving-Target Tasks Gaze Control in Golf Putting Quiet-Eye Training in Golf Quiet Eye in Billiards Gaze Control in Moving-Target Tasks Interpreting the Quiet-Eye Period in Targeting Tasks Chapter 7. Gaze Control in Interceptive Timing Tasks Interceptive Timing Tasks Defined Object Recognition: Anticipating Object Flight Object Tracking: Reading a Moving Object Object Tracking and Object Control: Hitting Targets in Table Tennis Object Recognition, Object Tracking, and Object Control Quiet-Eye Training in the Volleyball Serve Reception Relationship Between Gaze Control and Verbal Reports Gaze Control in Ice Hockey Goaltending Chapter 8. Gaze Control in Tactical Tasks What Are Tactical Tasks? Visual-Spatial Intelligence Tenenbaum's Context and Target Control Model Klein's Recognition-Primed Model of Decision Making Gaze Control During Locomotion Gaze Control During Set and Novel Plays Part III. Decision Training in Sport Chapter 9. Decision-Training Model Four Foundations of Decision Training Paradox of Modern Motor Learning Research Three-Step Decision-Training Model Evidence Showing the Effectiveness of Decision Training Chapter 10. Designing Practices With a Decision-Training Focus DT Tool 1: Variable Practice (Smart Variations) DT Tool 2: Random Practice (Smart Combinations) Research Support for Variable and Random Practice Variable and Random Practice in the Sport Setting Example 1: Decision Training in Badminton Tactics Example 2: Decision Training in Freestyle Ski Jumping Example 3: Decision Training in Golf Putting Chapter 11. Providing Feedback With a Decision-Training Focus Feedback Defined DT Tool 3: Bandwidth Feedback DT Tool 4: Questioning Research Support for Bandwidth Feedback and Questioning DT Tool 5: Video Feedback and Self-Regulation Example 1: Decision Training in Biathlon Skiing Example 2: Decision Training in Counseling Chapter 12. Providing Instruction With a Decision-Training Focus DT Tool 6: Hard-First Instruction and Modeling Does Modeling Improve Performance? DT Tool 7: External Focus of Instruction Example 1: Decision Training in Cycle Racing Example 2: Decision Training in Speed Skating Glossary References Additional Quiet Eye and Decision Training Resources Index About the Author

Perception, Cognition, and Decision Training : The Quiet Eye in Action

Spatial-temporal gaze behaviour patterns were analysed as normal participants wearing a mobile eye tracker were required to step on 17 footprints, regularly or irregularly spaced over a 10-m distance, placed in their travel path. We examined the characteristics of two types of gaze fixation with respect to the participants' stepping patterns: footprint fixation; and travel fixation when the gaze is stable and travelling at the speed of whole body. The results showed that travel gaze fixation is a dominant gaze behaviour occupying over 50% of the travel time. It is hypothesised that this gaze behaviour would facilitate acquisition of environmental and self-motion information from the optic flow that is generated during locomotion: this in turn would guide movements of the lower limbs to the appropriate landing targets. When participants did fixate on the landing target they did so on average two steps ahead, about 800–1,000 ms before the limb is placed on the target area. This would allow them sufficient time to successfully modify their gait patterns. None of the gaze behaviours was influenced by the placement (regularly versus irregularly spaced) of the footprints or repeated exposures to the travel path. Rather visual information acquired during each trial was used "de novo" to modulate gait patterns. This study provides a clear temporal link between gaze and stepping pattern and adds to our understanding of how vision is used to regulate locomotion.

How far ahead do we look when required to step on specific locations in the travel path during locomotion

In order to fully understand how vision is used to guide locomotion it is necessary to know what people look at as they move through the environment. This study provides information, hitherto lacking, regarding gaze behaviour associated with both maintaining and changing the direction of locomotion: activities that are essential for efficient navigation through our cluttered environment. Participants’ spatiotemporal gaze patterns were recorded whilst they performed a task requiring that they either maintained a straight walking trajectory or changed their direction of walking by 30° or 60°, left or right, at the midpoint of a 9-m path. Participants were either visually cued to turn when they stepped on a trigger mat placed one step before the mid-point of the walkway (cued trials) or given verbal instruction about the required route prior to the start of each trial (advance knowledge trials). Our clear finding was that for the large majority of the time participants’ gaze was aligned with environmental features lying in their current plane of progression both prior to and following the onset of the transition stride during which the direction change was implemented. This gaze behaviour was observed both during cued trials (78% of total fixation time prior to the transition stride onset and 89% following the transition stride onset) and advance knowledge trials (67% prior to transition stride onset, 92% following transition stride onset). When not aligned with the plane of progression, gaze was normally fixated on environmental features related to either known or potential future routes. Prior to changing the direction of walking, individuals invariably made saccadic eye movements in order to align gaze with the end-point of the required travel path. This gaze realignment was invariably accompanied by head reorientation, which was initiated, on average, at the same time as the saccade. On average, participants fixated gaze on their goal (represented by the cue light at the travel path end-point) until after head realignment with the new path was achieved. Additionally, the head was consistently aligned with participants’ current walking direction prior to and following the transition stride even on the minority of occasions when they were looking elsewhere. These findings challenge the ecological validity of existing theories of how visual information is used to determine heading direction and are consistent with the proposal that aligning the head with the desired travel direction through coordinated eye and head movements provides the CNS with an allocentric frame of reference that is used to control the movement of the body in space.

Joan N. Vickers

Papers

Visual control when aiming at a far target

Where and when do we look as we approach and step over an obstacle in the travel path

Perception, Cognition, and Decision Training : The Quiet Eye in Action

How far ahead do we look when required to step on specific locations in the travel path during locomotion

"Look where you're going!": gaze behaviour associated with maintaining and changing the direction of locomotion.