title: [Development of human visual cognitive function in childhood: evaluation by exploratory eye movements to a picture of a smiling face].
abstract: To evaluate the development of human visual cognitive function in childhood, we examined exploratory eye movements in 78 healthy subjects using affective pictures. We divided them into six groups, each of which comprised 14 subjects (7 boys or men, 7 girls or women) at the indicated ages. Exploratory eye movements were recorded via gazing points using an eye-mark recorder. The total eye scanning length (TESL) of gaze points increased significantly with age, and the mean eye scanning length, in 4-6-year-olds was significantly shorter than in the others groups. The total number of gaze points (TNGP) on the left half of the screen increased significantly with age. The left TNGP in 4-6-year-olds was significantly smaller than in the other groups. The response search score (RSS) measured in 8 areas of the screen increased significantly with age. It was concluded that exploratory eye movements are useful markers to estimate the development of human visual cognitive function in childhood.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Nursing, Fukuoka Prefectural University, Tagawa, Fukuoka. egami@fukuoka-pu.ac.jp
authors.forename: Chiyomi
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Egami
authors.forename: Kiichiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Morita
authors.forename: Youhei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ishii
authors.forename: Yushiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yamashita
authors.forename: Toyojiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsuishi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D005133:Eye Movements / Q000502:physiology*; D005149:Facial Expression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012904:Smiling; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*