Everyone knows the saying that ‘the eyes are the mirror of the soul‘. Now, it seems that eye movement indeed reveals what’s going on in the brain. The slightest eye movement can reveal information about the personality and behavior of a person, claims a new study.
Researchers from the Johns Hopkins University found that rapid eye movements show impatience and inability of self-restraint.
Understanding how the brain perceives the time can explain why the decision-making process is more difficult for people with mental disorders such as schizophrenia or for people who have suffered a head injury.
“When I go to a pharmacy and see a huge queue, how do I decide if I will have to wait too long?” was one of the questions asked by the researchers at the press conference. “Who are those who decide not to wait and leave? Are they people who walk and talk quickly? Do they perceive the relationship of the time with the subsequent rewards in a different way?”
Based on these questions, the research team analyzed the possible reasons for the impatient behavior. They hypothesized that patience can be linked to individual perception of time and, therefore, affects every movement and behavior.
The researchers studied the eye movement of the participants and combined the results of visual tests with spontaneity and decision making rates.
The results showed an obvious correlation between the speed of eye movement and the personality trait of patience. In other words, the participants who turned their look at the fastest rate were the most impatient.
The study, which was published in The Journal of Neuroscience, indicates that the subjective perception of the importance of time can affect the speed of eye movement and decision-making.
At the same time, patience is not the only personality trait someone’s eye movement can reveal. Even though the notion that the eye movements can betray lies is long debunked, in general, they are considered to be one of the most important body language cues.