From the corner of our eye: how our eyes and brain work together to process the world around us
Research by Ines Verissimo sheds light on the crucial role of peripheral vision in guiding our attention and decision-making processes. As part of her PhD research, Verissimo explored how our brain and eyes collaborate to interpret the world beyond our direct line of sight - what we see from the “corner of our eye”.
“While central vision allows us to focus on the fine details of a scene, most of what we perceive comes at a much lower resolution, from the periphery of our vision,” Ines Verissimo explains. Whether we are searching for a friend in a crowd or locating keys on a cluttered table, our extrafoveal (peripheral) vision plays a vital role in helping us decide where to look next. By examining eye movement patterns and brain activity, this study provides new insights into how the visual system quickly processes information in a dynamic environment.
Peripheral vision
Verissimo’s research demonstrates that individuals who experience more “visual crowding” (where objects in the peripheral vision blend together) take longer to find targets and make more eye movements. Verissimo: “In contrast, those with less visual crowding can process more information at once, making their searches faster and more efficient.” This suggests that peripheral vision shapes our ability to search for objects in an image.
Brain activity
The study also revealed that the brain actively enhances certain visual features when we focus on a specific color. Using MRI data, Verissimo found that when we search for a colour, like a red car in traffic, our brain boosts the processing of all red objects, no matter where they appear. However, despite this enhancement, objects directly in front of us remain the easiest to detect, highlighting the brain’s natural preference for central vision when prioritizing information.
Practical applications
These findings have broad applications in fields such as user interface design and road safety. For example, placing key information in areas where our eyes naturally focus could improve the readability of digital screens, advertisements, and road signs. “This is especially relevant for drivers, who rely on both central and peripheral vision to navigate safely,” Verissimo explains. Additionally, individuals with vision impairments or conditions like dyslexia, where visual crowding affects reading ability, may benefit from tailored vision training programs designed to reduce crowding effects.
More information on the thesis