Eye movement data provide valuable insight into written language comprehension. It helps understand language processing at various levels of analysis within the sentence: character, syllable, word, phrase, or sentence.
Reading and language
Understanding how we read and acquire language
Eye tracking has become an established tool to objectively measure human language processing with important applications in linguistics and education research.
Why use eye tracking?
Eye tracking is a scientific research methodology used to understand human cognitive processes and behavioral patterns, as we perceive, process, and comprehend language.
What you can measure with eye tracking
The eye tracking solution with a dedicated application, like our software Tobii Pro Lab, can further process the eye tracking data to draw valuable conclusions on reading and language, including:
Reading behavior
Get insights into text processing, the duration of visual attention assigned to specific text parts at the phrase, word, or even character level.
Language processing
Understand language processing at various levels of analysis within the sentence: character, syllable, word, phrase, or sentence.
Comprehension strategies
Long regressions (more than ten letter spaces back along the line or to another line) may indicate difficulty understanding or incorporating a unit into the previous context.
Second language acquisition
Study how language learners process written text in their non-native language.
Digital reading
Study how readers interact with various text formats, interfaces, and content delivery platforms.
Atypical learning patterns
Eye tracking can reveal fixation duration, saccades, and regressions, helping identify atypical patterns like dyslexia or ADHD.
Field of research
Educational psychology Educational psychology
Psycholinguistics Psycholinguistics
Cognitive psychology Cognitive psychology
Neurolinguistics Neurolinguistics
Educational research Educational research
Developmental psychology Developmental psychology
Eye tracking insights
In educational psychology, eye tracking can prove to be a great tool to gain insights into learning behavior, cognitive load, and engagement. The results help effectively design, evaluate, and improve educational materials and learning situations.
Moreover, eye tracking methodology can be used to reveal atypical reading patterns. It provides a robust source of insight into conditions, therefore opening the possibility of an objective, unobtrusive diagnostic tool for learning difficulties such as dyslexia.
Research setups for reading and language studies
Wearable for the real world
The Tobii Pro Glasses 3 wearable eye tracker allows complete freedom of movement, which is crucial for behavioral insights in the real world. The lightweight design of the glasses, coupled with a wireless connection, allows participants to perform their tasks as usual.
Screen-based for the lab
For lab environments, our screen-based eye trackers, Tobii Pro spark and Tobii Pro Fusion, can be combined with Tobii Pro Lab to study perceptual-cognitive processes.
Screen-based for the field
In the field, you can connect the plug-and-play
Tobii Pro Fusion eye tracker to a screen in, say, a classroom, where study participants are readily available. Works together with Tobii Pro Lab to gather insights on gaze behavior.
Delve deeper into reading and linguistic exploration
Reading and language — Use cases
Eye tracking offers valuable insights into the cognitive processes involved in language comprehension, production, and learning.
Closing the literacy gap with AI and eye tracking
In this success story, we cover how Lexplore have leveraged years of scientific research about reading to create a PC-based AI solution that will help to close the literacy gap.
Eye tracking used to compare tactile and visual reading strategies
Researchers from the Netherlands used Tobii Pro Glasses and an infrared motion-capturing system to understand the reading strategies of both sighted and braille-dependent students when reading algebraic expressions.
Assessing reading habits with eye tracking
Close to eight million people in Germany struggle with reading, and as one of the peak bodies for promoting literacy, Stiftung Lesen (German Reading Foundation) wants to change that. As part of its activities, the organization conducts research into the behaviors and reading habits of young people and adults.
Understanding how children learn language
New York University’s Learn Lab uses eye tracking to study the learning mechanisms underlying language acquisition in children who are typically developing as well as children on the autism spectrum.
Language acquisition: A dance between the child and its environment
Prof. Dr. Nivedita Mani sheds light on the complex mechanisms behind language acquisition and how eye tracking empowers research in her baby lab.
How curiosity boosts language learning in childhood
To further explore how language acquisition relates to emotional state, Dr. Vivien Outters, with her colleagues in Göttingen and Oxford University, conducted a word-learning recognition experiment with 3-year-old children.
Scientific publications
Did you know that over 12,000 scientific publications feature Tobii eye tracking technology? Discover the latest trends in eye tracking for Reading and language research by exploring our scientific publication library.
Related products
Tobii Pro Spectrum
This high-performance research system captures gaze data at speeds up to 1200 Hz. A screen-based eye tracker for extensive research from fixation-based studies to micro-saccades.
Tobii Pro Fusion
Screen-based eye tracker, capturing gaze data at speeds up to 250 Hz. This powerful research system supports from fixation to saccade-based research outside of the lab.
Tobii Pro Lab
Tobii Pro Lab, our eye tracking software supporting screen-based and wearable eye trackers. Guides the researcher through the entire research workflow.
Chin Rest
A solution to hold a participant’s head in place when conducting eye tracking experiments with Tobii Pro Spectrum and Tobii Pro Fusion eye trackers.
Enabling success
Tobii offers tailored support to address research needs throughout your journey with Tobii’s eye tracking.
Tobii Funding support services
Tobii Funding support services help you improve your grant proposals for research that includes eye tracking in its methodology
Tobii Connect
Tobii Connect delivers product documentation, how-to guides, and answers to FAQs as well as access to software updates. Our customer care services help with any technical issues concerning Tobii products.
Tobii Academy
Tobii Academy our online learning platform, helping you ensure study success at every step of the way from study design to interpreting your eye tracking data.