Do investors show an attentional bias toward past performance? An eye-tracking experiment on visual attention to mutual fund disclosures in simplified fund prospectuses

Learning permits even relatively uninteresting stimuli to capture attention if they are established as predictors of important outcomes. Associative theories explain this “learned predictiveness” effect by positing that attention is a function of the relative strength of the association between stimuli and outcomes. In three experiments we show that this explanation is incomplete: learned overt visual-attention is not a function of the relative strength of the association between stimuli and an outcome. In three experiments, human participants were exposed to triplets of stimuli that comprised (i) a target (which defined correct responding), (ii) a stimulus which was perfectly correlated with the presentation of the target and (iii) a stimulus which was uncorrelated with the presentation of the target. Participants’ knowledge of the associative relationship between the correlated/uncorrelated stimuli and the target was always good. However, eye-tracking revealed that an attentional bias towards the correlated stimulus only developed when it AND target-relevant responding preceded the target stimulus. We propose a framework in which attentional changes are modulated during learning as a function the relative strength of the association between stimuli and the task-relevant response, rather than an association between stimuli and the task-relevant outcome.

Download Full-text

Attentional processing of pain faces and other emotional faces in chronic pain–an eye-tracking study

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0252398 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (5) ◽

pp. e0252398

Author(s):

Janosch A. Priebe ◽

Claudia Horn-Hofmann ◽

Daniel Wolf ◽

Stefanie Wolff ◽

Michael Heesen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Chronic Pain ◽

Visual Attention ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Attentional Bias ◽

Fixation Duration ◽

Attentional Processing ◽

Emotional Faces ◽

Fixation Durations ◽

Neutral Face ◽

Fixation Probabilities

Altered attentional processing of pain-associated stimuli–which might take the form of either avoidance or enhanced vigilance–is thought to be implicated in the development and maintenance of chronic pain. In contrast to reaction time tasks like the dot probe, eye tracking allows for tracking the time course of visual attention and thus differentiating early and late attentional processes. Our study aimed at investigating visual attention to emotional faces in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain (N = 20) and matched pain-free controls (N = 20). Emotional faces (pain, angry, happy) were presented in pairs with a neutral face for 2000 ms each. Three parameters were determined: First fixation probabilities, fixation durations (overall and divided in four 500 ms intervals) and a fixation bias score as the relative fixation duration of emotional faces compared to neutral faces. There were no group differences in any of the parameters. First fixation probabilities were lower for pain faces than for angry faces. Overall, we found longer fixation duration on emotional compared to neutral faces (‘emotionality bias’), which is in accord with previous research. However, significant longer fixation duration compared to the neutral face was detected only for happy and angry but not for pain faces. In addition, fixation durations as well as bias scores yielded evidence for vigilant-avoidant processing of pain faces in both groups. These results suggest that attentional bias towards pain-associated stimuli might not generally differentiate between healthy individuals and chronic pain patients. Exaggerated attentional bias in patients might occur only under specific circumstances, e.g., towards stimulus material specifically relating to the specific pain of the patients under study or under high emotional distress.

Download Full-text

Visual disgust-elicitors produce an attentional blink independent of contextual and trait-level pathogen avoidance

10.31234/osf.io/qa8r4 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Paola Perone ◽

David Vaughn Becker ◽

Joshua M. Tybur

Keyword(s):

Individual Differences ◽

Visual Attention ◽

Attentional Blink ◽

Attentional Bias ◽

Visual Stimuli ◽

Attentional Biases ◽

Attentional Processing ◽

Trait Level ◽

Task Irrelevant ◽

Pathogen Avoidance

Multiple studies report that disgust-eliciting stimuli are perceived as salient and subsequently capture selective attention. In the current study, we aimed to better understand the nature of temporal attentional biases toward disgust-eliciting stimuli and to investigate the extent to which these biases are sensitive to contextual and trait-level pathogen avoidance motives. Participants (N=116) performed in an Emotional Attentional Blink (EAB) task in which task-irrelevant disgust-eliciting, fear-eliciting, or neutral images preceded a target by 200, 500, or 800 milliseconds (i.e., lag two, five and eight respectively). They did so twice - once while not exposed to an odor, and once while exposed to either an odor that elicited disgust or an odor that did not - and completed a measure of disgust sensitivity. Results indicate that disgust-eliciting visual stimuli produced a greater attentional blink than neutral visual stimuli at lag two and a greater attentional blink than fear-eliciting visual stimuli at both lag two and at lag five. Neither the odor manipulations nor individual differences measures moderated this effect. We propose that visual attention is engaged for a longer period of time following disgust-eliciting stimuli because covert processes automatically initiate the evaluation of pathogen threats. The fact that state and trait pathogen avoidance do not influence this temporal attentional bias suggests that early attentional processing of pathogen cues is initiated independent from the context in which such cues are perceived.

Download Full-text

Attentional Bias to Untrustworthy Faces: Evidence From Eye Tracking Data

Advances in Psychological Science ◽

10.3724/sp.j.1042.2015.01508 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 23 (9) ◽

pp. 1508

Author(s):

Qiandong WANG ◽

Qinggong LI ◽

Kaikai CHEN ◽

Genyue FU

Keyword(s):

Eye Tracking ◽

Attentional Bias ◽

Tracking Data

Download Full-text

'Old' Money Matters: The Sensitivity of Mutual Fund Redemption Decisions to Past Performance

SSRN Electronic Journal ◽

10.2139/ssrn.903792 ◽

2006 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Zoran Ivkovich ◽

Scott J. Weisbenner

Keyword(s):

Mutual Fund ◽

Past Performance

Download Full-text

Visual Attention Software: A New Tool for Understanding the “Subliminal” Experience of the Built Environment

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app11136197 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (13) ◽

pp. 6197

Author(s):

Alexandros A. Lavdas ◽

Nikos A. Salingaros ◽

Ann Sussman

Keyword(s):

Visual Attention ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Wearable Sensors ◽

Computer Gaming ◽

Geometric Patterns ◽

Relative Design ◽

Fixation Points ◽

High Degree ◽

Artificial Intelligence Application ◽

Intelligence Application

Eye-tracking technology is a biometric tool that has found many commercial and research applications. The recent advent of affordable wearable sensors has considerably expanded the range of these possibilities to fields such as computer gaming, education, entertainment, health, neuromarketing, psychology, etc. The Visual Attention Software by 3M (3M-VAS) is an artificial intelligence application that was formulated using experimental data from eye-tracking. It can be used to predict viewer reactions to images, generating fixation point probability maps and fixation point sequence estimations, thus revealing pre-attentive processing of visual stimuli with a very high degree of accuracy. We have used 3M-VAS software in an innovative implementation to analyze images of different buildings, either in their original state or photographically manipulated, as well as various geometric patterns. The software not only reveals non-obvious fixation points, but also overall relative design coherence, a key element of Christopher Alexander’s theory of geometrical order. A more evenly distributed field of attention seen in some structures contrasts with other buildings being ignored, those showing instead unconnected points of splintered attention. Our findings are non-intuitive and surprising. We link these results to both Alexander’s theory and Neuroscience, identify potential pitfalls in the software’s use, and also suggest ways to avoid them.

Download Full-text

Relationships between attention to emotion and anxiety among a community sample of adolescents

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s0033291720003360 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-12

Author(s):

Benjamin C. Mullin ◽

Jacob B. W. Holzman ◽

Laura Pyle ◽

Emmaly L. Perks ◽

Yaswanth Chintaluru ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Anxiety Disorders ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Attentional Bias ◽

Community Sample ◽

Full Range ◽

Small Samples ◽

Control Analysis ◽

Attentional Processes ◽

Anxious Youth ◽

Case Control Analysis

Abstract Background Attentional bias to threat has been implicated as a cognitive mechanism in anxiety disorders for youth. Yet, prior studies documenting this bias have largely relied on a method with questionable reliability (i.e. dot-probe task) and small samples, few of which included adolescents. The current study sought to address such limitations by examining relations between anxiety – both clinically diagnosed and dimensionally rated – and attentional bias to threat. Methods The study included a community sample of adolescents and employed eye-tracking methodology intended to capture possible biases across the full range of both automatic (i.e. vigilance bias) and controlled attentional processes (i.e. avoidance bias, maintenance bias). We examined both dimensional anxiety (across the full sample; n = 215) and categorical anxiety in a subset case-control analysis (n = 100) as predictors of biases. Results Findings indicated that participants with an anxiety disorder oriented more slowly to angry faces than matched controls. Results did not suggest a greater likelihood of initial orienting to angry faces among our participants with anxiety disorders or those with higher dimensional ratings of anxiety. Greater anxiety severity was associated with greater dwell time to neutral faces. Conclusions This is the largest study to date examining eye-tracking metrics of attention to threat among healthy and anxious youth. Findings did not support the notion that anxiety is characterized by heightened vigilance or avoidance/maintenance of attention to threat. All effects detected were extremely small. Links between attention to threat and anxiety among adolescents may be subtle and highly dependent on experimental task dimensions.

Download Full-text

Does What We See Shape History? Examining Workload History as a Function of Performance and Ambient/Focal Visual Attention

ACM Transactions on Applied Perception ◽

10.1145/3449066 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (2) ◽

pp. 1-17

Author(s):

Shannon P. Devlin ◽

Jennifer K. Byham ◽

Sara Lu Riggs

Keyword(s):

Visual Attention ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Performance Measure ◽

Task Demands ◽

Unexpected Finding ◽

Impact Performance ◽

History Effects ◽

And Performance ◽

Workload History ◽

Over Time

Changes in task demands can have delayed adverse impacts on performance. This phenomenon, known as the workload history effect, is especially of concern in dynamic work domains where operators manage fluctuating task demands. The existing workload history literature does not depict a consistent picture regarding how these effects manifest, prompting research to consider measures that are informative on the operator's process. One promising measure is visual attention patterns, due to its informativeness on various cognitive processes. To explore its ability to explain workload history effects, participants completed a task in an unmanned aerial vehicle command and control testbed where workload transitioned gradually and suddenly. The participants’ performance and visual attention patterns were studied over time to identify workload history effects. The eye-tracking analysis consisted of using a recently developed eye-tracking metric called coefficient K , as it indicates whether visual attention is more focal or ambient. The performance results found workload history effects, but it depended on the workload level, time elapsed, and performance measure. The eye-tracking analysis suggested performance suffered when focal attention was deployed during low workload, which was an unexpected finding. When synthesizing these results, they suggest unexpected visual attention patterns can impact performance immediately over time. Further research is needed; however, this work shows the value of including a real-time visual attention measure, such as coefficient K , as a means to understand how the operator manages varying task demands in complex work environments.

Download Full-text