Effects of others’ gaze and facial expression on an observer’s microsaccades and their association with ADHD tendencies

Background: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of others’ gaze on an observer’s microsaccades. We also aimed to conduct preliminary investigations on the relationship between the microsaccadic response to a gaze and a gazer’s facial expression and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) tendencies. Methods: Twenty healthy undergraduate and graduate students performed a peripheral target detection task by using unpredictable gaze cues. During the task, the participants’ eye movements, along with changes in pupil size and response times for target detection, were recorded. ADHD tendencies were determined using an ADHD questionnaire. Results: We found that consciously perceiving the gaze of another person induced the observer’s attention; moreover, microsaccades were biased in the direction opposite to the gaze. Furthermore, these microsaccade biases were differentially modulated, based on the cognitive processing of the facial expressions of the gaze. Exploratory correlation analysis indicated that microsaccade biases toward gazes with fearful expressions may specifically be correlated with participant characteristics, including inattention. Conclusions: Our findings support that microsaccades reflect spatial attention processing and social cognitive processing. Moreover, the exploratory correlation analysis results suggested the potential benefit of using microsaccade bias toward spatial attention to assess pathophysiological responses associated with ADHD tendencies.