Eye movement to elicit emotionally charged memories? Maybe!

Research published by Cell Press in the September 10th issue of the journal Neuron, provides compelling insight into the relationship between activity in the hippocampus, eye movements, and both conscious and unconscious memory. Scientists may have discovered a way to garner information about memories by tracking patterns of eye movements, even when an individual is unable or unwilling to report what they recall.

I’ve done Rapid Eye Technology for over twenty years and I’ve seen lots of eye movements. In every case, the eyes would move, dilate, tear, even change color slightly due to memory recall. Sometimes these changes were dramatic – very noticeable. The report in Neuron tends to confirm my theory that the eyes are directly connected to the emotional centers of the brain in some way – and that memories, particularly emotionally charged memories, will show themselves in some fashion through the eyes.

“It is conceivable that eye-tracking could be used to obtain information about past events from participants who are unaware or attempting to withhold information,” offers Dr. Hannula. “In other words, there may be circumstances in which eye movements provide a more robust account of past events or experiences than behavioral reports alone.”

I’m very excited about this line of inquiry. Perhaps in time such studies will help develop a more reliable indicator than the current methods for determining whether someone is being deceitful. Further, perhaps such research might help us understand the workings of Rapid Eye Technology.

Researchers: Deborah E. Hannula and Charan Ranganath, of the University of California, Davis, Davis, CA.