TY - JOUR

T1 - The anti-orienting phenomenon revisited: Effects of gaze cues on antisaccade performance

AU - Wolohan, Felicity

AU - Crawford, Trevor

PY - 2012/8

Y1 - 2012/8

N2 - When the eye gaze of a face is congruent with direction of an upcoming target, saccadic eye movements of the observer towards that target are generated more quickly, in comparison to eye gaze incongruent with the direction of the target. This work examined the conflict in an antisaccade task, when eye gaze points towards the target, but the saccadic eye movement should be triggered in the opposite direction. In a gaze cueing paradigm a central face provided an attentional gaze cue towards the target or away from the target. Participants (N = 38) generated pro- and anti- saccades to peripheral targets that were congruent or incongruent with the previous gaze cue. Paradoxically, facilitatory effects of a gaze cue towards the target were observed for both the pro- and anti- saccade tasks. The results are consistent with the idea that eye gaze cues are processed in the task set that is compatible with the saccade programme. Thus, in an antisaccade paradigm participants may anti-orient with respect to the gaze cue resulting in faster saccades on trials when the gaze cue is towards the target. The results resemble a previous observation by Fischer and Weber (1996) using low level peripheral cues. The current study extends this finding to include central socially communicative cues.

AB - When the eye gaze of a face is congruent with direction of an upcoming target, saccadic eye movements of the observer towards that target are generated more quickly, in comparison to eye gaze incongruent with the direction of the target. This work examined the conflict in an antisaccade task, when eye gaze points towards the target, but the saccadic eye movement should be triggered in the opposite direction. In a gaze cueing paradigm a central face provided an attentional gaze cue towards the target or away from the target. Participants (N = 38) generated pro- and anti- saccades to peripheral targets that were congruent or incongruent with the previous gaze cue. Paradoxically, facilitatory effects of a gaze cue towards the target were observed for both the pro- and anti- saccade tasks. The results are consistent with the idea that eye gaze cues are processed in the task set that is compatible with the saccade programme. Thus, in an antisaccade paradigm participants may anti-orient with respect to the gaze cue resulting in faster saccades on trials when the gaze cue is towards the target. The results resemble a previous observation by Fischer and Weber (1996) using low level peripheral cues. The current study extends this finding to include central socially communicative cues.

KW - Antisaccade

KW - Gaze cueing

KW - Attention

KW - eye movement behavior

KW - face recognition

KW - Saccadic eye movement

KW - Eye movements

KW - Individual differences

KW - Inhibitory control

KW - Latency

KW - Prosaccade

KW - Reaction time

KW - Saccade

KW - Working memory

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84866045080&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1007/s00221-012-3180-y

DO - 10.1007/s00221-012-3180-y

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:84866045080

VL - 221

SP - 385

EP - 392

JO - Experimental Brain Research

JF - Experimental Brain Research

SN - 0014-4819

IS - 4

ER -