Habituation is the decrease in attention to repeated stimuli, which we study by observing babies’ looking behaviour. This process helps babies and young children learn to distinguish between important and less important stimuli in their environment.
In this study, we also measure the baby’s pupil size. In an exploratory analysis, we want to examine whether there is a relationship between pupil size and looking behavior. But why is this relevant?
The pupil doesn’t just respond to changes in light, but also to attention and mental effort. So when a baby pays less attention to a stimulus (i.e., habituates), we expect this to be reflected in a change in pupil size. In this way, pupil size might serve as an objective measure of what is going on in the baby’s brain.
If we better understand the relationship between pupil size and habituation, we can apply this knowledge in future research — for example, in studies on autism spectrum disorder (ASD), anxiety disorders, and in general research involving individuals who are non-verbal, such as infants or people with communication difficulties.
We are looking for parents who would like to contribute to our habituation study. Interested in participating? You can sign up via the ‘Participate’ page!