Our Eyes Cannot Lie When It Comes To Our Decisions

No matter how hard we try to keep our cards to ourselves, our eyes might give us away.

By Mark Travers, Ph.D. | September 22, 2023

Our daily decisions shape our experiences, be it as mundane as selecting an apple from a fruit stand or as important as choosing a house to buy. Every choice we make is a culmination of conscious and unconscious processes. But have you ever considered how integral our eyes, specifically their movements, are in these processes?

Take online shopping, for instance. Imagine you're browsing through a website looking for a new pair of shoes. You hover over several images, reading descriptions, checking prices and viewing different angles. Without realizing it, your eyes might linger just a fraction longer on a particular pair.

To the casual observer, it's a mere glance, but sophisticated eye-tracking algorithms can detect this subtle lingering. Based on such data, marketers can discern which products are more likely to be appealing to consumers. In other words, even before you click "add to cart," your eyes might have already made the purchase decision.

Here are two science-based findings that highlight the power of our gaze in decision-making.

1. Our Eyes Betray Decisions Beyond Our Conscious Awareness

A recent study demonstrated that our eyes can reveal decisions we're making, even if we aren't consciously aware of it. This eye-brain connection, especially the subtle eye movements known as saccades, gives away clues about our cognitive processes.

Here's how the study worked:

1. Eight participants sat in front of a screen and were shown patterns of moving dots. Their task was to determine the direction these dots were moving.
2. At the start, participants stared at specific points on the screen to calibrate the equipment that was tracking their eye movements.
3. As the moving dots appeared, participants' eyes displayed a fascinating behavior: they began to subtly shift in a specific direction even before the participants pressed buttons to indicate their decisions.
4. Interestingly, even when participants were given another task (like moving their hands to a certain point), their eyes still gave away their decisions about the dots' directions.

One might think they were just observing or tracking the motion of the dots. However, the timing and pattern of these subtle eye movements hinted at something deeper. These shifts weren't simply reactions to the dots' motion. Instead, they seemed to precede the conscious decision, suggesting that the eyes were reflecting a decision-making process that was still underway in the brain. It's as if the eyes were offering a sneak peek into the participants' thoughts before they even realized they had made up their minds.

The essence of this study is that our eyes, through their tiny movements, can hint at decisions our brain is processing even before we consciously recognize or voice that decision. This happens even when we're occupied with other tasks. The relationship between our eyes and brain is that intimate.

2. Visual Cues May Explain Our Purchasing Decisions

Eye movements aren't just telling of our cognitive processes. They also play a significant role in our purchasing choices, especially when it comes to understanding consumer behavior.

A 2020 study published in Frontiers in Psychology honed in on the power of visual attention in shaping these decisions. In the study, researchers used eye-tracking technology to observe the preferences of 28 children between ages 7 and 12.

These children were systematically divided into two groups. The first group was shown a variety of icons while the second group was presented with an assortment of toys. The study was structured in phases. Initially, children observed a specific layout termed the "Alternative Forced-choice." In this setup, the children were compelled to make a choice between the options, thus "forcing" a decision from the available "alternatives." Essentially, this method determined clear preferences by eliminating the option of a non-decision.

In the second phase, they were allowed a freer interaction, where they chose the items they were most drawn to. To capture their preferences more explicitly, each child later rated the items, marking them on a spectrum of liking or disliking.

The results provided fascinating insights. By observing the length and intensity of a child's gaze during the final moments before their decision, researchers could predict with remarkable accuracy—71.2% for icons and 67.2% for toys—which item the child would select. This evidence solidifies the concept that our visual attention can unveil a lot about our underlying decisions and inclinations.

Conclusion

The intricate dance of our eye movements offers more than just a passive view of the world. Rather, they are predictive indicators of our impending decisions. As technological advancements like eye-tracking continue to evolve, their potential applications in market research, product design and behavioral studies become increasingly profound. Recognizing this untapped power of our gaze can provide valuable insights into understanding consumer behavior and decision-making processes.