Condition-specific changes in gaze allocation following gaze-triggered interpersonal-distance outcomes

Summary

This study examined whether repeated exposure to gaze-triggered changes in apparent interpersonal distance was associated with subsequent changes in gaze allocation. Fifty adults completed two within-subject conditions, Approach and Recede, each consisting of Baseline, Training, and Test phases.

During training, sustained gaze toward a designated face triggered a predefined approach or recede animation once a gaze-duration threshold was reached. Importantly, the animation then proceeded independently of subsequent gaze behavior. Gaze allocation was assessed during static Baseline and Test phases using the proportion of dwell time directed toward the face previously associated with the gaze-triggered outcome.

Dwell-time proportion decreased from Baseline to Test following gaze-triggered approach animations, whereas no reliable group-level change was observed following recede animations. The findings demonstrate condition-specific changes in later gaze allocation while remaining agnostic about subjective evaluation, value acquisition, or any particular learning mechanism.

From an HCI perspective, the study provides a controlled paradigm for examining how gaze can function as an input that triggers socially meaningful visual changes and how repeated exposure to such gaze-triggered outcomes is associated with subsequent interaction patterns.

Research line

• Gaze-Triggered Interaction: using sustained gaze as an input that initiates discrete changes in visual social stimuli
• Eye Tracking: operationalizing subsequent visual allocation through dwell-time proportions
• Social HCI: manipulating apparent interpersonal distance through approach and recede animations
• Contingent Feedback: separating gaze-triggered initiation from the subsequent course of the visual outcome
• Interaction History: examining changes in later gaze allocation after repeated exposure to gaze-triggered outcomes

Links

• Publisher page
• DOI
• Open Science Framework

Recommended citation

An, C., & Matsuda, S. (2026). Condition-specific changes in gaze allocation following gaze-triggered interpersonal-distance outcomes. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 88, Article 185. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13414-026-03322-8

Recommended citation: An, C., & Matsuda, S. (2026). Condition-specific changes in gaze allocation following gaze-triggered interpersonal-distance outcomes. *Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 88*, Article 185. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13414-026-03322-8
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