How We Look At Mature Faces-An Eye-Tracking Investigation Into the Perception of Age

It is still unclear which facial region contributes most to the perception of an aged face when evaluated by eye-tracking analyses. The authors sought to apply eye-tracking technology to identify whether mature faces require longer fixation durations than young faces and which facial region contribu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Aesthetic surgery journal 2023-02, Vol.43 (2), p.115-122
Main Authors: Frank, Konstantin, Ehrl, Denis, Bernardini, Francesco, Walbrun, Alina, Moellhoff, Nicholas, Alfertshofer, Michael, Davidovic, Kristina, Mardini, Samir, Gotkin, Robert H, Cotofana, Sebastian
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Attention
Eye Movements
Eye-Tracking Technology
Face
Female
Humans
Male
Perception
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Summary:It is still unclear which facial region contributes most to the perception of an aged face when evaluated by eye-tracking analyses. The authors sought to apply eye-tracking technology to identify whether mature faces require longer fixation durations than young faces and which facial region contributes most to the perception of a mature face. Eye-tracking analyses were conducted in 74 volunteers (37 males, 37 females; 43 ≤ 40 years, 31 > 40 years) evaluating their gaze pattern and the fixation durations for the entire face and 9 facial subregions. Frontal facial images of 16 younger (40 years) gender-matched individuals were presented in a standardized setting. Independent of age or gender of the observer, a younger stimulus image was viewed shorter than an older stimulus image with 0.82 (0.63) seconds vs 1.06 (0.73) seconds with P < 0.001. There was no statistically significant difference in their duration of a stable eye fixation when observers inspected a male vs a female stimulus image [0.94 (0.70) seconds vs 0.94 (0.68) seconds; P = 0.657] independent of the observer's age or gender. The facial image that captured the most attention of the observer (rank 9) was the perioral region with 1.61 (0.73) seconds for younger observers and 1.57 (0.73) seconds for older observers. It was revealed that the perioral region attracts the most attention of observers and contributes most to an aged facial appearance. Practitioners should be mindful of the importance of the perioral region when designing an aesthetic treatment plan.
ISSN:1090-820X
1527-330X
DOI:10.1093/asj/sjac251