Where’s Waldo?… Eye Tracking Only Registers Half of the Visual Search Process

Many people are familiar with the popular “Where’s Waldo” books, in which you search for the red and white sweater-clad Waldo in a chaotic scene of colors and images. But while you were scanning the pictures for the little man, you were most likely unaware of the complex brain functions and visual processing that was occurring. An article entitled “How Our Brains Find Waldo,” answers the question “How do we find one distinct element in a visually busy environment?”

Using eye tracking to answer this question only provides information on half of the visual search process. A visual search is a combination of both overall scanning of the image using peripheral vision, and also clearly focused, or foveal, vision. While eye-tracking can indicate where the eyes focus their visual attention while looking at, for example, a Where’s Waldo picture, it fails to illustrate the peripheral scanning that occurs simultaneously.

To further understand this process, it is necessary to know the difference between foveal and peripheral vision. Foveal vision is the sharp, detailed vision that occurs at the very center of the retina. As the article appropriately describes it, foveal vision is the “spotlight function of attention.” It is the foveal vision that is tracked with an eye-tracking device. The fixations that indicate visual attention occur when foveal vision is engaged in registering the details of a specific spot in the field of view. Peripheral vision, on the other hand, accounts for the majority of our vision’s field of view. It scans the environment, picking up on movement and strong visual cues, but lacks the detail of the foveal vision. During a visual search, the image is scanned using peripheral vision to seek out clues that warrant further, clearer examination with foveal vision.

So, how does this relate to Waldo? You’re brain selects neurons that are best suited for picking up the characteristics of the object you are looking for, in this case the details of Waldo’s clothing. Then the prefrontal cortex of the brain initiates the synchronized firing of these neurons to help them stand out from the chaos of the rest of the image when you are scanning it with your eyes. The peripheral vision registers areas of the image that may potentially be where Waldo is hiding, and the foveal vision is directed to those spots for further investigation. Eventually, through the teamwork of both types of vision, Waldo is spotted, and you can turn the page and start the process all over again.

How Our Brain Finds Waldo

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