Eye contact
|
Eye contact stimulates different feelings in different people |
Eye contact is the event when two people look at each other's
eyes at the same time
["Eye contact". Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Retrieved May 14, 2006.]. It is a form of
nonverbal communication, and can be an intense or
emotional occurrence or a soon-forgotten event. Eye contact is a large influence on
social behavior, but it means dramatically different things at different times and in different situations. Eye contact is interpreted differently and occurs at greatly different frequencies across cultures and animal species.
Eye aversion is the avoidance of eye contact.
Eye contact and
facial expressions provide important
social and emotional information; people, perhaps without consciously doing so, probe each other's eyes and faces for positive or negative
mood signs. In some contexts, the meeting of eyes arouses strong emotions. These include:
Romantic attraction
Lovers often gaze into each other's eyes for extended periods of time, using
nonverbal communication to express their
love or
desire for one another. The eyes have often been described as the "windows of the
soul".
Intimidation and status
In
primate behavior, the unwavering gaze is used as a sign of
dominance and
threat, while gaze avoidance originated as a submissive cue. Looking directly into the others' eyes for a prolonged time may be an effective way of intimidating somebody or of initiating combat.
Most common with
stutterers is the inability to maintain eye contact with the listener, which may in turn hamper the growth of personal or professional
relationships [
1].
Actors in
theatre are trained to avoid specific eye contact with any members of the audience, and in
film are generally instructed to avoid looking directly into the camera. This is to keep the audience from feeling
self-conscious or uncomfortable.
Confidence and trust
Physiological explanation
The size of the
pupils may reveal a great deal about a person's current state. Strong
emotions, convictions, and
moods often stimulate the
sympathetic nervous system and cause dilation of the pupils. In response to a threat or fear, this is often called the
fight or flight response, and has an effect on the appearance of the eye.
The pupil may dilate if a person sees something (or someone) of interest or is
aroused, thus making eye contact much more intense than it already is. Studies have shown that humans (especially
females) are judged as more
attractive if their pupils are wide open and more dilated than is normal.
Mother/child eye contact
Although some assert that children often respond to their
mother's eyes from the moment of
birth and that
babies instinctively
smile at black
geometric spots -- perceiving them as "eyes" by six weeks of
age, a 1985 study published in the Journal of Experimental Child Psychology suggested that "3-month-old infants are comparatively insensitive to being the object of another's visual regard" [
2]. A 1996 Canadian study with 3 to 6 month old infants found that smiling in the infants decreased when adult eye contact was removed [
3]. A recent British study in the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience found that face recognition by infants was facilited by direct gaze [
4]. Other recent research has confirmed the belief that the direct of gaze of adults influences the direct of gaze of infants[
5] [
6].
Other explanations
Communicating attentionA person's direction of gaze may indicate to others where his or her
attention lies.
Facilitating learningRecent studies suggests that eye contact has a positive impact on the retention and recall of information and may promote more efficient learning[
7][
8][
9].
Eye Movements are often used to compensate for increased physical distance. We can overcome psychologically the physical distance between us. We can catch someone's eye at a party. We can become psychologically closer even though a distance separates us.
In Islam,
Muslims must lower their
gaze and try not to focus on the opposite sex's faces and eyes after the initial first eye contact, other than their legitimate partners or family members, in order to avoid potential unwanted desires (See References). Lustful glances to those of the opposite sex, young or adult, are also prohibited. This means that eye contact between any man and woman is allowed only for a second or two. This is a must in most Islamic schools, with some exceptions depending on the case, like when teaching, testifying, or looking at a girl for marriage. If allowed, it is only allowed under the general rule: "No-Desire", clean eye-contact. Otherwise, it is not allowed, and considered "adultery of the eyes."
In
adults, eye contact shows
personal involvement and creates intimate
bonds. Mutual gaze narrows the
physical gap between humans.
People may feel uncomfortable if someone is staring at them.
Documentary filmmaker
Errol Morris invented a device called the
Interrotron which allowed his interview subjects to look directly into the camera while being filmed. It allows the film's viewers to maintain eye contact with the people in Morris' films, giving what some describe as a more intimate acquaintance with them.
*Al-Munajjid, Sheikh Muhammad Saleh (14/March/2004).
"Twenty Tips for Lowering the Gaze". Retrieved March, 31, 2006.
*A Group of Islamic Researchers (10/July/2004).
"Lowering the Gaze: Summer Combat!". Retrieved March, 31, 2006.
*
Evil eye*
Interpersonal communication*
Staring contest*
The gaze*
The look - Description of interpersonal discomfort by
Jean-Paul Sartre*
Making Eye Contact by Dr. Allen Konopacki (.pdf file)*
The Secrets of Successful Eye Contact
