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Prein JC, Maurits L, Werwach A, Haun DBM, Bohn M. Variation in gaze following across the life span: A process-level perspective. Dev Sci 2024:e13546. [PMID: 38980169 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13546] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2023] [Revised: 06/05/2024] [Accepted: 06/19/2024] [Indexed: 07/10/2024]
Abstract
Following eye gaze is fundamental for many social-cognitive abilities, for example, when judging what another agent can or cannot know. While the emergence of gaze following has been thoroughly studied on a group level, we know little about (a) the developmental trajectory beyond infancy and (b) the sources of individual differences. In Study 1, we examined gaze following across the lifespan (N = 478 3- to 19-year-olds from Leipzig, Germany; and N = 240 20- to 80-year-old international, remotely tested adults). We found a steep performance improvement during preschool years, in which children became more precise in locating the attentional focus of an agent. Precision levels then stayed comparably stable throughout adulthood with a minor decline toward old age. In Study 2, we formalized the process of gaze following in a computational cognitive model that allowed us to conceptualize individual differences in a psychologically meaningful way (N = 60 3- to 5-year-olds, 50 adults). According to our model, participants estimate pupil angles with varying levels of precision based on observing the pupil location within the agent's eyes. In Study 3, we empirically tested how gaze following relates to vector following in non-social settings and perspective-taking abilities (N = 102 4- to 5-year-olds). We found that gaze following is associated with both of these abilities but less so with other Theory of Mind tasks. This work illustrates how the combination of reliable measurement instruments and formal theoretical models allows us to explore the in(ter)dependence of core social-cognitive processes in greater detail. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Gaze following develops beyond infancy. The highest precision levels in localizing attentional foci are reached in young adulthood with a slight decrease towards old age. We present a computational model that describes gaze following as a process of estimating pupil angles and the corresponding gaze vectors. The model explains individual differences and recovers signature patterns in the data. To estimate the relation between gaze- and vector following, we designed a non-social vector following task. We found substantial correlations between gaze following and vector following, as well as Level 2 perspective-taking. Other Theory of Mind tasks did not correlate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Christin Prein
- Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Institute of Psychology in Education, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Lüneburg, Germany
| | - Luke Maurits
- Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Annika Werwach
- Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
- Max Planck School of Cognition, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Daniel B M Haun
- Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Manuel Bohn
- Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Institute of Psychology in Education, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Lüneburg, Germany
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2
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Ishikawa M, Senju A. Action value calculations in social context from infancy. Trends Cogn Sci 2023; 27:227-229. [PMID: 36610863 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2022.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2022] [Revised: 12/09/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Infants adaptively modulate their social behaviours, such as gaze-following, to social context. We propose that such modulations are based on infants' social decision-making, to achieve the most valuable outcome. We propose an 'action value calculator model', which formulates the cognitive mechanisms underlying, and the development of, the decision-making process during interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mitsuhiko Ishikawa
- Centre for Baby Science, Doshisha University, 4-1-1 Kizugawadai, Kizugawa, Kyoto 619-0295, Japan; Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, UK.
| | - Atsushi Senju
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, UK; Research Centre for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-ku, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka 431-3192, Japan
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Ishikawa M, Senju A, Kato M, Itakura S. Physiological arousal explains infant gaze following in various social contexts. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:220592. [PMID: 35991332 PMCID: PMC9382202 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2022] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
Gaze following (GF) is fundamental to central aspects of human sociocognitive development, such as acquiring language and cultural learning. Studies have shown that infant GF is not a simple reflexive orientation to an adult's eye movement. By contrast, infants adaptively modulate GF behaviour depending on the social context. However, arguably, the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying contextual modulation of GF remain somewhat unexplored. In this study, we tested the proposition about whether the contextual modulation of infant GF is mediated by the infant's heart rate (HR), which indicates the infant's physiological arousal. Forty-one 6- to 9-month-old infants participated in this study, and infants observed either a reliable face, which looked towards the location of an object, or an unreliable face, which looked away from the location of an object. Thereafter, the infants watched a video of the same model making eye contact or not making any ostensive signals, before shifting their gaze towards one of the two objects. We revealed that reliability and eye contact acted independently to increase HR, which then fully mediates the effects of these social cues on the frequency of GF. Results suggest that each social cue independently enhances physiological arousal, which then accumulatively predicts the likelihood of infant GF behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mitsuhiko Ishikawa
- Centre for Baby Science, Doshisha University, 4-1-1 Kizugawadai, Kizugawa, Kyoto 619-0295, Japan
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck College, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, UK
| | - Atsushi Senju
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck College, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, UK
- Research Centre for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-ku, Hamamatsu, Sizuoka 431-3192, Japan
| | - Masaharu Kato
- Centre for Baby Science, Doshisha University, 4-1-1 Kizugawadai, Kizugawa, Kyoto 619-0295, Japan
| | - Shoji Itakura
- Centre for Baby Science, Doshisha University, 4-1-1 Kizugawadai, Kizugawa, Kyoto 619-0295, Japan
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Ishikawa M, Senju A, Kato M, Itakura S. Physiological arousal explains infant gaze following in various social contexts. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:220592. [PMID: 35991332 DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6135552] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2022] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
Gaze following (GF) is fundamental to central aspects of human sociocognitive development, such as acquiring language and cultural learning. Studies have shown that infant GF is not a simple reflexive orientation to an adult's eye movement. By contrast, infants adaptively modulate GF behaviour depending on the social context. However, arguably, the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying contextual modulation of GF remain somewhat unexplored. In this study, we tested the proposition about whether the contextual modulation of infant GF is mediated by the infant's heart rate (HR), which indicates the infant's physiological arousal. Forty-one 6- to 9-month-old infants participated in this study, and infants observed either a reliable face, which looked towards the location of an object, or an unreliable face, which looked away from the location of an object. Thereafter, the infants watched a video of the same model making eye contact or not making any ostensive signals, before shifting their gaze towards one of the two objects. We revealed that reliability and eye contact acted independently to increase HR, which then fully mediates the effects of these social cues on the frequency of GF. Results suggest that each social cue independently enhances physiological arousal, which then accumulatively predicts the likelihood of infant GF behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mitsuhiko Ishikawa
- Centre for Baby Science, Doshisha University, 4-1-1 Kizugawadai, Kizugawa, Kyoto 619-0295, Japan
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck College, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, UK
| | - Atsushi Senju
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck College, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, UK
- Research Centre for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-ku, Hamamatsu, Sizuoka 431-3192, Japan
| | - Masaharu Kato
- Centre for Baby Science, Doshisha University, 4-1-1 Kizugawadai, Kizugawa, Kyoto 619-0295, Japan
| | - Shoji Itakura
- Centre for Baby Science, Doshisha University, 4-1-1 Kizugawadai, Kizugawa, Kyoto 619-0295, Japan
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Michel C, Pauen S, Hoehl S. When it pays off to take a look: Infants learn to follow an object's motion with their gaze-Especially if it features eyes. INFANCY 2022; 27:515-532. [PMID: 35266282 DOI: 10.1111/infa.12464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Social cues and instrumental learning are two aspects potentially fostering early gaze following. We systematically investigated the influence of social features (schematic eyes vs. reverse-contrast eyes) and gaze-contingent reinforcement (elicited vs. not elicited) on 4-month-olds' learning to attend to gaze-cued objects. In 4 experiments, we tested infants' (N = 74) gaze following of a turning block with schematic or reverse-contrast eyes. In Experiments 1 and 2, infants could elicit an attractive animation in a training phase via interactive eye tracking by following the turning of the block. Experiments 3 and 4 were yoked controls without contingent reinforcement. Infants did not spontaneously follow the motion of the block. Four-month-olds always followed the block after training when it featured schematic eyes. When the block featured reverse-contrast eyes, the training phase only affected infants' looking behavior without reinforcement. While speaking to a certain degree of plasticity, findings stress the importance of eyes for guiding infants' attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine Michel
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Faculty of Education, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Sabina Pauen
- Institute of Psychology, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Stefanie Hoehl
- Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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Silverstein P, Feng J, Westermann G, Parise E, Twomey KE. Infants Learn to Follow Gaze in Stages: Evidence Confirming a Robotic Prediction. OPEN MIND 2022; 5:174-188. [PMID: 35024530 PMCID: PMC8746125 DOI: 10.1162/opmi_a_00049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2020] [Accepted: 08/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Gaze following is an early-emerging skill in infancy argued to be fundamental to joint attention and later language development. However, how gaze following emerges is a topic of great debate. Representational theories assume that in order to follow adults’ gaze, infants must have a rich sensitivity to adults’ communicative intention from birth. In contrast, learning-based theories hold that infants may learn to gaze follow based on low-level social reinforcement, without the need to understand others’ mental states. Nagai et al. (2006) successfully taught a robot to gaze follow through social reinforcement and found that the robot learned in stages: first in the horizontal plane, and later in the vertical plane—a prediction that does not follow from representational theories. In the current study, we tested this prediction in an eye-tracking paradigm. Six-month-olds did not follow gaze in either the horizontal or vertical plane, whereas 12-month-olds and 18-month-olds only followed gaze in the horizontal plane. These results confirm the core prediction of the robot model, suggesting that children may also learn to gaze follow through social reinforcement coupled with a structured learning environment.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jinzhi Feng
- Psychology Department, Lancaster University, UK
| | | | | | - Katherine E Twomey
- Division of Human Communication, Development and Hearing, University of Manchester, UK
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Bánki A, de Eccher M, Falschlehner L, Hoehl S, Markova G. Comparing Online Webcam- and Laboratory-Based Eye-Tracking for the Assessment of Infants' Audio-Visual Synchrony Perception. Front Psychol 2022; 12:733933. [PMID: 35087442 PMCID: PMC8787048 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.733933] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Online data collection with infants raises special opportunities and challenges for developmental research. One of the most prevalent methods in infancy research is eye-tracking, which has been widely applied in laboratory settings to assess cognitive development. Technological advances now allow conducting eye-tracking online with various populations, including infants. However, the accuracy and reliability of online infant eye-tracking remain to be comprehensively evaluated. No research to date has directly compared webcam-based and in-lab eye-tracking data from infants, similarly to data from adults. The present study provides a direct comparison of in-lab and webcam-based eye-tracking data from infants who completed an identical looking time paradigm in two different settings (in the laboratory or online at home). We assessed 4-6-month-old infants (n = 38) in an eye-tracking task that measured the detection of audio-visual asynchrony. Webcam-based and in-lab eye-tracking data were compared on eye-tracking and video data quality, infants' viewing behavior, and experimental effects. Results revealed no differences between the in-lab and online setting in the frequency of technical issues and participant attrition rates. Video data quality was comparable between settings in terms of completeness and brightness, despite lower frame rate and resolution online. Eye-tracking data quality was higher in the laboratory than online, except in case of relative sample loss. Gaze data quantity recorded by eye-tracking was significantly lower than by video in both settings. In valid trials, eye-tracking and video data captured infants' viewing behavior uniformly, irrespective of setting. Despite the common challenges of infant eye-tracking across experimental settings, our results point toward the necessity to further improve the precision of online eye-tracking with infants. Taken together, online eye-tracking is a promising tool to assess infants' gaze behavior but requires careful data quality control. The demographic composition of both samples differed from the generic population on caregiver education: our samples comprised caregivers with higher-than-average education levels, challenging the notion that online studies will per se reach more diverse populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Bánki
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Martina de Eccher
- Department for Psychology of Language, Georg-Elias-Müller-Institut für Psychologie, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Lilith Falschlehner
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Stefanie Hoehl
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Gabriela Markova
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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Astor K, Gredebäck G. Gaze following in infancy: Five big questions that the field should answer. ADVANCES IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT AND BEHAVIOR 2022; 63:191-223. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.acdb.2022.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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