Affective Eye Contact: An Integrative Review

Abstract

In recent years, many studies have shown that perceiving other individuals’ direct gaze has robust effects on various attentional and cognitive processes. However, considerably less attention has been devoted to investigating the affective effects triggered by eye contact. This article reviews research concerning the effects of others’ gaze direction on observers’ affective responses. The review focuses on studies in which affective reactions have been investigated in well-controlled laboratory experiments, and in which contextual factors possibly influencing perceivers’ affects have been controlled. Two important themes emerged from this review. First, explicit affective evaluations of seeing another’s direct versus averted gaze have resulted in rather inconsistent findings; some studies report more positive subjective feelings to direct compared to averted gaze, whereas others report the opposite pattern. These contradictory findings may be related, for example, to differences between studies in terms of the capability of direct-gaze stimuli to elicit feelings of self-involvement. Second, studies relying on various implicit measures have reported more consistent results; they indicate that direct gaze increases affective arousal, and more importantly, that eye contact automatically evokes a positively valenced affective reaction. Based on the review, possible psychological mechanisms for the positive affective reactions elicited by eye contact are described.

Eye contact boosts the reflexive component of overt gaze following

“…Overall, this study provides novel evidence confirming the relevance of eye contact in modulating human behaviour, at least under conditions that promote its contextual saliency, and aligns with the notion that eye contact is capable of amplifying different cognitive and physiological mechanisms [6][7][8][9][10] . In this regard, the fact that eye contact enhanced the reflexive component of overt gaze following fits nicely with the "fast track modulator" model pushed forward by Senju and collaborators 8,9 .…”

“…Importantly, understanding whether another individual is looking at us is an essential ability to successfully navigate within social environments, since it may activate the execution of adequate approach-avoidance behavioural responses. Moreover, a bulk of studies has reported that establishing eye contact with others can also shape our physiological and cognitive responses profoundly, and different theoretical frameworks and models have been pushed forward to explain the impact of eye contact on human behaviour [6][7][8][9][10] . The overall picture emerging from this literature suggests that eye contact episodes are typically associated with incremental effects.…”

Enhanced mirroring upon mutual gaze: Multimodal evidence from TMS-assessed corticospinal excitability and the EEG mu rhythm

“…Whereas perceived direct gaze from others is indicative of their communicative intent, observed averted gaze signals that the attention of others is directed elsewhere. Accordingly, perceiving the gaze of others has been shown to influence several socio-cognitive processes and behavioral responses in the observer (for relevant reviews, see Conty, George, & Hietanen, 2016;Hietanen, 2018;Senju & Johnson, 2009). In terms of mirror system activity, several TMS studies have shown that under various experimental conditions, perceived communicative intent from the actor (conveyed by different gaze cues) significantly modulates M1 excitability (MEP responses) in the observer (Betti et al, 2019;Prinsen & Alaerts, 2019;Prinsen et al, 2017;Prinsen, Brams, & Alaerts, 2018).…”

Eye contact reduces lying

“…The perception of another individual's direct gaze is known to influence many aspects of human emotion, cognition, and behavior (for reviews, see Conty, George, & Hietanen, 2016;Hietanen, 2018;Kleinke, 1986;Senju & Johnson, 2009). Among other effects, another's direct gaze has been demonstrated to increase honest and prosocial behavior.…”