Where did I come from? Where am I going? Functional influences on visual search fixation duration

• Main Authors: Harold H. Greene, James M. Brown
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bern Open Publishing 2017-03-01
• Series: Journal of Eye Movement Research
• Subjects: Saccade direction; Fixation duration; Saccade preparation
• Online Access: https://bop.unibe.ch/JEMR/article/view/2956

Real time simulation of visual search behavior can occur only if the control of fixation durations is sufficiently understood.  Visual search studies have typically confounded pre- and post-saccadic influences on fixation duration.  In the present study, pre- and post-saccadic influences on fixation durations were compared by considering saccade direction. Novel use of a gaze-contingent moving obstructer paradigm also addressed relative contributions of both influences to total fixation duration.   As a function of saccade direction, pre-saccadic fixation durations exhibited a different pattern from post-saccadic fixation durations.  Post-saccadic fixations were also more strongly influenced by peripheral obstruction than pre-saccadic fixation durations. This suggests that post-saccadic influences may contribute more to fixation durations than pre-saccadic influences. Together, the results demonstrate that it is insufficient to model the control of visual search fixation durations without consideration of pre- and post-saccadic influences.