Eye movement differs in British and Chinese populations

[DavidDvorkin]

The team, working with Sichuan University in Chengdu, China, investigated eye movements in Chinese and British people to further understanding of the brain mechanisms that control them and how they compare between different human populations. They found that a type of eye movement, that is rare in British people, is much more common in Chinese people, suggesting that there could be subtle differences in brain function between different populations.

Tests of eye movements can be used to help identify signs of brain injury or disease, such as schizophrenia and multiple sclerosis, in populations across the world. Research at Liverpool, however, has shown that within the Chinese population there are a high proportion of healthy people that exhibit a pattern of eye movements previously thought to be rare in the absence of injury or disease. Findings, published in the journal Experimental Brain Research, suggest that this pattern may not be as effective as a signal of altered brain function, in every global community, as originally thought.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-03/uol-emd032411.php

Surprising, at least to me.

[LiberalFighter]

1. Would there be a difference in eye movements between the following groups?

Those that write with left hand instead of right?

Those that drive on left side of road instead of right?

Those that write/read from right to left instead of left to right?

[Poll_Blind]

2. At least if this is localized to native-born Chinese- could it have to do with their words?

Or, more specifically, the complex characters required to read those words? Could being born and raised in a culture with such a complex writing system be responsible for a certain portion of the population over-developing more-rapid eye movement out of necessity in order to process the extra visual information which Chinese writing contains?

Just a thought...

PB

[jberryhill]

4. +1

If they are doing this with literate adults in both populations, then they've been trained for years to move their eyes differently.

[Marr]

3. Could this be a result of the reading pattern? I know Chinese and Japanese audiences

often dislike graphical layouts and art compositions that westerners find pleasing... but if you flip them around 180 degrees, they like it. I do it with their ads and artwork sometimes and it usually seems much more pleasing to my eye.

[WatsonT]

5. Did they look at britons of Chinese origin?

Or people raised in China of European descent (that may be trickier).

I'm guessing this is entirely a culture thing.

[DavidDvorkin]

6. Not yet, but that's next

At the end of the article, it says:

Scientists are now investigating eye movement in Chinese people born and living in Britain compared to Chinese populations born in China but now living in Britain. The study aims to further understanding into the cultural effects on eye movement behaviour.

[WatsonT]

7. Ah

good. That would seem to be a major component of this.