Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 10, 2026
07:48
Eye Tracking During A Complex Aviation Task For Insights Into Information Processing
Published on: April 4, 2025
Object-based attentional effects in response to eye-gaze and arrow cues
Andrea Marotta1, Maria Casagrande, Juan Lupiáñez
1Dipartimento di Psicologia, "Sapienza" Università di Roma, Italy.
Acta Psychologica
|June 5, 2013
Summary
Both eye gaze and directional arrows can automatically direct attention to moving objects. This research shows that attention remains attached to objects even as they change location in dynamic visual scenes.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Visual Perception
Background:
- Central cues like eye gaze and arrows are known to trigger reflexive attentional shifts.
- Previous research has not clarified if this attention can be attached to specific objects in a visual scene.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether attention, cued by eye gaze or arrows, can be attached to objects within a dynamic visual display.
- To determine if attention remains with objects as they move to new locations.
Main Methods:
- Participants' attention was directed to one of two objects using uninformative directional arrows or eye gaze cues.
- The cued and uncued objects then rotated to a new location.
- A target stimulus was presented within one of the objects, and response times were measured.
Main Results:
- Participants responded significantly faster to targets presented in the cued object compared to the uncued object.
- This effect was observed regardless of whether eye gaze or arrow cues were used.
- Attention was successfully attached to the cued objects even after their movement.
Conclusions:
- Both eye gaze and arrow cues can effectively direct and maintain attention on objects in dynamic visual scenes.
- These findings suggest that reflexive attention can be object-based and track moving items.
- This has implications for understanding visual attention in complex, changing environments.
