title: Watching Eyes effects: When others meet the self.
abstract: The perception of direct gaze-that is, of another individual's gaze directed at the observer-is known to influence a wide range of cognitive processes and behaviors. We present a new theoretical proposal to provide a unified account of these effects. We argue that direct gaze first captures the beholder's attention and then triggers self-referential processing, i.e., a heightened processing of stimuli in relation with the self. Self-referential processing modulates incoming information processing and leads to the Watching Eyes effects, which we classify into four main categories: the enhancement of self-awareness, memory effects, the activation of pro-social behavior, and positive appraisals of others. We advance that the belief to be the object of another's attention is embedded in direct gaze perception and gives direct gaze its self-referential power. Finally, we stress that the Watching Eyes effects reflect a positive impact on human cognition; therefore, they may have a therapeutic potential, which future research should delineate.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory CHART-UPON (EA 4004), University of Paris Ouest-Nanterre-La Défense, France. Electronic address: laurence.conty@u-paris10.fr.
authors.forename: Laurence
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Conty
authors.affiliation: Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM), Social and Affective Neuroscience Laboratory and Centre MEG-EEG, Paris, France; Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR_S 1127, Paris, France; CNRS, UMR 7225, Paris, France; Inserm, U 1127, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Nathalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: George
authors.affiliation: Human Information Processing Laboratory, School of Social Sciences and Humanities/Psychology, University of Tampere, Finland.
authors.forename: Jari K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Hietanen
mesh_terms: D001364:Awareness; D003071:Cognition; D004532:Ego; D005123:Eye; D005403:Fixation, Ocular; D006801:Humans; D008568:Memory; D012919:Social Behavior
keywords: Direct gaze; Eye contact; Mentalizing; Self-referential processing; Watching Eyes effects