Translating Attentional Control Theory to Applied Psychological Eye Tracking Research

Abstract

This chapter will describe how eye tracking outcomes can be used to evaluate psychological processes, particularly in applied contexts (e.g., clinical anxiety disorders, elite motor performance and rehabilitation settings). Our discussion will focus primarily on the influence of emotion on two key aspects of attentional processing related to Attentional Control Theory: i) attentional bias for threatening stimuli, and ii) processing (in)efficiency. We present key metrics than can be used to infer these processes and describe that previous management of outcome measures can be allocated into two categories: transferred and retrofitted. This content is primarily aimed at readers thinking about using eye-tracking in the context of psychological research and practice; to help them design their task(s) and select appropriate outcome measures in order to avoid potential confounds.