Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 26, 2026

Gaze in Action: Head-mounted Eye Tracking of Children's Dynamic Visual Attention During Naturalistic Behavior
Published on: November 14, 2018
Preschoolers' oculomotor behaviour during their observation of an action task
James D Morgante1, Jeffrey M Haddad, Rachel Keen
1University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, USA.
Abstract:
Adult and child oculomotor behaviour was measured during the observation of a naturalistic action task. Adult and 4-year-old participants viewed a video presentation of an actor making a root-beer float. Eye movements were monitored to examine fixation patterns during a series of means-end action sequences. Look-ahead fixations (i.e., gaze anticipation) were measured to determine if children would saccade to the goal site prior to the completion of each action sequence as adults do. Look-ahead fixations were observed in both the adult and child groups, with no significant age differences found in levels of gaze anticipation.
Related Concept Videos
Observational Learning
Naturalistic Observations
Steps in the Modeling Process
Attention is the first necessary component for observational learning. It involves focusing on what the model is doing and saying. For example, if you decide to take a drawing class to enhance your skills, you need to pay close attention to the instructor's words and hand movements. The characteristics of the model significantly...

