How Information Influences the Way We Perceive Unfamiliar Objects - An Eye Movement Study

The world around us is filled with unfamiliar objects and items that we may not know much about. To better understand how we process and perceive these unknown entities, researchers have explored the physiological responses of our brain when it processes different types of information. This study aims to explore how information impacts people's perception of unfamiliar objects, with a specific focus on eye movements. 17 participants were recruited to take part in this within-subject experiment, where they were tasked with evaluating aviation engines in terms of perceived quality, cohesion, and reliability. Four models of aviation engines were chosen as the unfamiliar objects, with two models being assessed without relevant information and the other two being assessed with relevant information. The results showed a significant difference in the perceived quality of aviation engines before and after providing relevant information. Additionally, eye movement metrics such as fixation, saccade, and heatmap revealed changes in the way participants perceived the aviation engines. The findings of this study contribute to the understanding of the role of information design and its potential to effectively increase user interest.