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Decoding memory function through naturalistic gaze patterns

Psychology

Decoding memory function through naturalistic gaze patterns

J. S. Wynn, A. Khosla, et al.

Research conducted by Jordana S. Wynn, Anisha Khosla, Arber Kacollja, Elaheh Shahmiri, Nicole D. Anderson, Kelly Shen, and Jennifer D. Ryan shows that naturalistic gaze patterns reliably track memory decline: reduced explorative, adaptive, and differentiated visual sampling marks impaired memory across five groups ranging from healthy young adults to amnesic cases.... show more
Abstract
Eye movements are closely linked to encoding and retrieval processes, with changes in viewing behavior reflecting age- and pathology-related memory decline. In the current study, we leveraged this relationship to explore possible gaze-based indicators of memory function. Across two task-free viewing experiments, we investigated changes in naturalistic viewing behavior across five participant groups spanning a broad spectrum of memory function, from healthy young adults to amnesic cases. We show that memory decline is associated with an underlying reduction in explorative, adaptive, and differentiated visual sampling of the environment. Our results provide compelling evidence that naturalistic gaze patterns can serve as a sensitive marker of cognitive decline.
Publisher
PNAS
Published On
Aug 11, 2025
Authors
Jordana S. Wynn, Anisha Khosla, Arber Kacollja, Elaheh Shahmiri, Nicole D. Anderson, Kelly Shen, Jennifer D. Ryan
Tags
eye movements
gaze patterns
memory decline
naturalistic viewing
exploratory visual sampling
amnesia
cognitive marker
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