The cone of gaze

Gaze direction is an important cue that regulates social interactions. Although humans are very accurate in determining gaze directions in general, they have a surprisingly liberal criterion for the presence of mutual gaze. We first established a psychophysical task to measure the cone of gaze, which required observers to adjust the eyes of a virtual head to the margins of the area of mutual gaze. Then we examined differences between 2D, 3D, and genuine real life gaze. Finally, the tolerance for image distortions when the virtual head is not viewed from the proper vantage point was investigated. Gaze direction was remarkably robust toward loss in detail and distortion. Important lessons for the design of eye-contact in virtual environments can be derived from these findings.