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Pupil Size Changes as an Active Information Channel for Biofeedback Applications

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Abstract

Pupil size is usually regarded as a passive information channel that provides insight into cognitive and affective states but defies any further control. However, in a recent study (Ehlers et al. 2015) we demonstrate that sympathetic activity indexed by pupil dynamics allows strategic interference by means of simple cognitive techniques. Utilizing positive/negative imaginings, subjects were able to expand pupil diameter beyond baseline variations; albeit with varying degrees of success and only over brief periods. The current study provides a comprehensive replication on the basis of considerable changes to the experimental set-up. Results show that stricter methodological conditions (controlled baseline settings and specified user instructions) strengthen the reported effect, whereas overall performance increases by one standard deviation. Effects are thereby not restricted to pupillary level. Parallel recordings of skin conductance changes prove a general enhancement of induced autonomic arousal. Considering the stability of the results across studies, we conclude that pupil size information exceeds affective monitoring and may constitute an active input channel in human–computer interaction. Furthermore, since variations in pupil diameter reliably display self-induced changes in sympathetic arousal, the relevance of this parameter is strongly indicated for future approaches in clinical biofeedback.

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Funding

This study was supported by the Collaborative Research Center (SFB Transregio 62) by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of General Psychology, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany

    Jan Ehlers, Christoph Strauch, Juliane Georgi & Anke Huckauf

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  1. Jan Ehlers
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  2. Christoph Strauch
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  3. Juliane Georgi
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  4. Anke Huckauf
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Correspondence to Jan Ehlers.

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All procedures performed in studies were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Ehlers, J., Strauch, C., Georgi, J. et al. Pupil Size Changes as an Active Information Channel for Biofeedback Applications. Appl Psychophysiol Biofeedback 41, 331–339 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10484-016-9335-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10484-016-9335-z

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