Lin Yaojie, Isomura Tomoko
Graduate School of Informatics, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan.
Int J Psychophysiol. 2025 Jun;212:112564. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2025.112564. Epub 2025 Apr 10.
Perceiving others' gaze direction is an essential aspect of social interactions. The cone of direct gaze (CoDG) refers to the range within which an observer perceives a gaze as looking directly at them. Previous research has demonstrated that self-relevant exteroceptive cues can widen the CoDG. However, the effect of self-relevant interoceptive information on the CoDG remains unknown. This study investigated the contribution of cardiac afferent signals and vagal tone to the perception of gaze from others. We used a modified gaze discrimination task to synchronize face stimuli with various gaze directions to specific phases of the cardiac cycle. Results revealed that participants with higher heart rate variability (HRV) exhibited a wider CoDG during cardiac systole (when cardiac signals are maximally represented in the brain). However, no effect was observed during cardiac diastole (when cardiac signals are quiescent). Moreover, this effect was independent of individual differences in anxiety levels and autistic traits. These findings are evidence that individuals with greater cardiac vagal control are more sensitive to cardiac afferent signals during systole, which leads to a stronger self-directed perception of others' gaze under transient and ambiguous gaze perception conditions. Our findings highlight the self-referential role of cardiac interoceptive signals in gaze perception and expand our knowledge of interoceptive influences on social judgment.
感知他人的注视方向是社交互动的一个重要方面。直接注视锥（CoDG）指的是观察者将注视感知为直接看向自己的范围。先前的研究表明，与自我相关的外感受线索可以拓宽直接注视锥。然而，与自我相关的内感受信息对直接注视锥的影响仍然未知。本研究调查了心脏传入信号和迷走神经张力对他人注视感知的作用。我们使用了一种改良的注视辨别任务，将具有不同注视方向的面部刺激与心动周期的特定阶段同步。结果显示，心率变异性（HRV）较高的参与者在心脏收缩期（此时心脏信号在大脑中得到最大程度的体现）表现出更宽的直接注视锥。然而，在心脏舒张期（此时心脏信号静止）未观察到这种效应。此外，这种效应与焦虑水平和自闭症特质的个体差异无关。这些发现证明，在收缩期，具有更强心脏迷走神经控制能力的个体对心脏传入信号更敏感，这导致在短暂且模糊的注视感知条件下，对他人注视的自我指向性感知更强。我们的研究结果突出了心脏内感受信号在注视感知中的自我参照作用，并扩展了我们对内感受对社会判断影响的认识。
