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Updated: May 20, 2026
05:54
Eye-tracking to Distinguish Comprehension-based and Oculomotor-based Regressive Eye Movements During Reading
Published on: October 18, 2018
Targeting regressions: do readers pay attention to the left?
Jens K Apel1, John M Henderson, Fernanda Ferreira
1General and Biological Psychology, University of Wuppertal, 42119 Wuppertal, Germany. japel@uni-wuppertal.de
Psychonomic Bulletin & Review
|July 14, 2012
Summary
The perceptual span in reading extends farther left before a regression (leftward eye movement). Masking words beyond this range shortened regressions and increased fixation duration, showing reading behavior adapts to upcoming saccade direction.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Psycholinguistics
- Reading Science
Background:
- The perceptual span, the region of text processed during fixation, is crucial for reading.
- Typically, it extends 14-15 characters right and 3-4 characters left of fixation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if the perceptual span extends further left before a regression (leftward eye movement).
- To determine if this extended span is specific to regressive saccades.
Main Methods:
- Employed a display-change paradigm with word masking.
- Masked words beyond the typical 3-4 character leftward range before regressions.
- Compared reading behavior (saccade length, fixation duration) between masked and unmasked conditions.
Main Results:
- Significantly shorter regressive saccades were observed in the masked condition.
- Fixation and gaze durations were longer when regressions were executed under masking.
- Forward saccades (progressions) were unaffected by the leftward masking manipulation.
Conclusions:
- The perceptual span during reading dynamically changes based on the direction of the subsequent eye movement.
- Reading behavior is modulated by an anticipatory widening of the perceptual span before regressions.
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