September 2019
Volume 19, Issue 10
Open Access
Vision Sciences Society Annual Meeting Abstract  |   September 2019
Biases in perceived gaze direction using 3D avatars and immersive virtual reality environments.
Author Affiliations & Notes
  • Brynna M Koschinsky-Boffa
    Department of Psychology, Robarts Research Institute, Western University, ON Canada
  • Diego Buitrago-Piza
    Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, ON Canada
  • Julio Martinez-Trujillo
    Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, ON Canada
    Brain and Mind Institute, London ON, Canada
Journal of Vision September 2019, Vol.19, 217d. doi:https://doi.org/10.1167/19.10.217d
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      Brynna M Koschinsky-Boffa, Diego Buitrago-Piza, Julio Martinez-Trujillo; Biases in perceived gaze direction using 3D avatars and immersive virtual reality environments.. Journal of Vision 2019;19(10):217d. https://doi.org/10.1167/19.10.217d.

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      © ARVO (1962-2015); The Authors (2016-present)

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Abstract

Perceived gaze direction plays a significant role in successful communication between two people (Otsuka, S. et al., 2014). Specifically, eye contact provides information about the type of interaction taking place and regulates behavior accordingly (Tomonaga & Imura, 2010). Previous studies using two-dimensional face models displayed on flat monitors have shown two phenomena: a repulsive effect that causes gaze direction to be perceived shifted opposite to head orientation, and an attractive effect that causes a bias towards head orientation (Gibson & Pick, 1963). Here, using virtual reality, we determined whether or not the two effects persist when faces and their components (eyes) are perceived in three dimensions (3D). In an immersive 3D world, a model is presented with a combination of three head and seven pupil orientations, along with four eye types: Normal (white sclera, grey iris, black pupil), inverted (grey sclera, white iris, black pupil), pupil-only (white sclera, black pupil, absence of the iris) and no pupil (white sclera, grey iris, absence of the pupil). We observed a significant repulsive effect in each head rotation in almost all conditions (Wilcoxon Rank Test, p < .05), except for the inverted eyes (p > .156). Reaction times were not significantly different between the normal, no pupil and pupil-only conditions (Kruskal-Wallis, p > .043). However, they were significantly longer in the inverted eyes condition relative to the others (p ≤ .001). The slope of the psychometric function was not significantly different between conditions (Kruskal-Wallis, p = .247). This indicates that task difficulty across conditions was similar. Our results demonstrate that the repulsive effect of head orientation on perceived gaze direction is also present when using 3D virtual displays. Moreover, they suggest that the repulsive effect is caused by the high contrast between the white sclera and the tissue surrounding the eye aperture.

Acknowledgement: CIHR, Autism Research Chair Ontario, NSERC, CFI 
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