Research by Shravan Murlidaran and Miguel P. Eckstein challenges the idea that our eyes are drawn to the brightest objects. It suggests our brains actively seek to understand a scene's narrative. This "free viewing" state prioritizes objects critical for "scene understanding" (SU relevance) over simple visual saliency. Evidence shows eye movements track changes in a story, not just visual similarity. Forcing a first glance at an SU-relevant object improves comprehension, showing our brain's default is an active search for meaning.
Article Citation:
Murlidaran, S., & Eckstein, M. P. (2024). The Curious Mind: Eye Movements to Maximize Scene Understanding. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.
