Pupillary responses to directional uncertainty while intercepting a moving target

Pupillary responses serve as sensitive indicators of cognitive processes, attentional shifts and decision-making dynamics. Our study investigates how directional uncertainty and target speed (VT) influence pupillary responses in a foveal tracking task involving the interception of a moving dot. Directional uncertainty, reflecting the unpredictability of the target's direction changes, was manipulated by altering the angular range (AR) from which random directions for the moving dot were extracted. Higher AR values were associated with reduced pupillary diameters, indicating that heightened uncertainty led to smaller pupil sizes. Additionally, an inverse U-shaped relationship between VT and pupillary responses suggested maximal diameters at intermediate speeds. Analysis of saccade-triggered responses showed a negative correlation between pupil diameter and directional uncertainty. Dynamic linear modelling revealed the influence of past successful collisions and other behavioural parameters on pupillary responses, emphasizing the intricate interaction between task variables and cognitive processing. Our results highlight the dynamic interplay between the directional uncertainty of a single moving target, VT and pupillary responses, with implications for understanding attentional mechanisms, decision-making processes and potential applications in emerging technologies.