Objective evaluation of human cognitive functions with simultaneous measurements of eyeblinks and pupillary responses

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K18686
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Exploratory)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Medium-sized Section 10:Psychology and related fields
• Research Institution: Chiba University
• Principal Investigator: Kimura Eiji 千葉大学, 大学院人文科学研究院, 教授 (80214865)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-06-29 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 瞬目 / 瞳孔反応 / 知覚的競合 / 視野闘争 / 持続的注意

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study investigated the relationship between cognitive processing and physiological measures of eyeblinks and pupillary responses. It showed that these physiological measures could play an important role in objectively evaluating human cognitive functions. The present results showed a close and reciprocal relationship between the switching of visual awareness (perceptual switching) and the eyeblink. Voluntary blinking or eyelid opening facilitated the perceptual switching, and after the perceptual switching, more spontaneous blinking was observed. In addition, the pupil dilated in response to focusing attention while observers monitored the visual stimulus. How much the pupil dilated depended on the relative length of the monitoring period. The present study suggested the feasibility of a multifaceted evaluation of human cognitive functions by simultaneously measuring eyeblinks and pupillary responses.

Free Research Field

実験心理学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究は、同一の実験事態で、自発性瞬目と随意性瞬目が及ぼす効果を比較し、さらには、ブラックアウトや随意性の開瞼の効果とも比較することにより、自発性と随意性の瞬目が機能的に異なる働きをすること、そしてそれは、眼を閉じることによって生じる一過性の視覚変化によらずに、随意性の眼瞼運動に伴う脳活動による可能性が高いことを示唆した点が学術的に重要である。瞳孔反応に関しても、持続的な注意の集中に対応した変化を示すことを明らかにした。瞬目や瞳孔反応は、携帯情報端末に搭載されたCCDカメラで簡便に計測できるため、これら生理指標を用いた客観的な認知機能のモニタリング・システム等への応用展開が期待できる。