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. 2023 Nov 1;13(1):18852.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-46103-1.

Exploring cross-cultural variations in visual attention patterns inside and outside national borders using immersive virtual reality

Alžběta Šašinková  1 , Jiří Čeněk  2   3 , Pavel Ugwitz  1 , Jie-Li Tsai  4 , Ioannis Giannopoulos  5 , David Lacko  1 , Zdeněk Stachoň  1 , Jan Fitz  1 , Čeněk Šašinka  1
Affiliations

Exploring cross-cultural variations in visual attention patterns inside and outside national borders using immersive virtual reality

Alžběta Šašinková et al. Sci Rep. .

Abstract

We examined theories of cross-cultural differences in cognitive style on a sample of 242 participants representing five cultural groups (Czechia, Ghana, eastern and western Turkey, and Taiwan). The experiment involved immersive virtual environments consisting of two salient focal objects and a complex background as stimuli, which were presented using virtual reality headsets with integrated eye-tracking devices. The oculomotor patterns confirmed previous general conclusions that Eastern cultures have a more holistic cognitive style, while Western cultures predominantly have an analytic cognitive style. The differences were particularly noticeable between Taiwan and the other samples. However, we found that the broader cultural background of each group was perhaps just as important as geographical location or national boundaries. For example, observed differences between Eastern (more holistic style) and Western Turkey (more analytic style), suggest the possible influence of varying historical and cultural characteristics on the cognitive processing of complex visual stimuli.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Map indicating the areas of origin of the participants. Created in ArcGIS Desktop 10.8, URL: https://www.esri.com/en-us/arcgis/products/arcgis-pro/overview.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Experimental procedure.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Stimuli—two examples of the presented complex environments. In the upper image the truck wreck and a group of barrels (top) represent focal objects at the same distance from the viewer, whereas in the bottom image, the scooter is nearer to the viewer than the red car.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Object colliders. Each focal object (ambulances) possessed an invisible mesh as a collider, set to 110% of the object’s size. These colliders served as regions of interest for the eye tracker. All other objects were marked as background.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Focal object dwell time per country.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Dwell time on focal objects closer and further from the viewer.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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