title: Eyes keep watch over you! Competition enhances joint attention in females.
abstract: The present study investigated if the gaze-cuing effect (i.e., the tendency for observers to respond faster to targets in locations that were cued by others' gaze direction than to not-cued targets) is modulated by the type of relationship (i.e., cooperative or competitive) established during a previous interaction with a cuing face. In two experiments, participants played a series of single-shot games of a modified version of the two-choice Prisoner's Dilemma against eight simulated contenders. They were shown a fictive feedback indicating if the opponents chose to cooperate or compete with them. Opponents' faces were then used as stimuli in a standard gaze-cuing task. In Experiment 1 females classified as average in competitiveness were tested, while in Experiment 2 females classified as high and low in competitiveness were tested. We found that only in females classified as low and average in competitiveness the gaze-cuing effect for competitive contenders was greater than for cooperative contenders. These findings suggest that competitive opponents represent a relevant source of information within the social environment and female observers with low and average levels of competition cannot prevent from keeping their eyes over them.
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication and Economics, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Viale Allegri, 9, 42121 Reggio Emilia, Italy. Electronic address: francesca.ciardo@unimore.it.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ciardo
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Edificio U6, Piazza dell'Ateneo Nuovo 1, 20126 Milan, Italy; Milan Centre for Neuroscience, Piazza dell'Ateneo Nuovo 1, 20126, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ricciardelli
authors.affiliation: Department of Philosophy and Communication, University of Bologna, University of Bologna, Via A. Gardino 23, 40122 Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Luisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lugli
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication and Economics, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Viale Allegri, 9, 42121 Reggio Emilia, Italy.
authors.forename: Sandro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rubichi
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication and Economics, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Viale Allegri, 9, 42121 Reggio Emilia, Italy. Electronic address: cristina.iani@unimore.it.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Iani
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D002755:Choice Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D003463:Cues; D005133:Eye Movements / Q000502:physiology*; D005145:Face; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D012919:Social Behavior; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Competition; Cooperation; Joint attention; Prisoner's Dilemma; Social interaction