Our research

Typical and atypical development of eye-hand coordination and fine motor skills

Poor visuomotor skills have adverse effects on children’s development, and their ability to engage in everyday activities. Understanding the underlying causes of poor visuomotor control is essential for developing targeted intervention programs. 

Our research is mapping out the maturation profile of eye-hand coordination in typically developing children, and the contribution of binocular visual input to normal development. We are also exploring the translation of portable technology (eye tracking and motion tracking) for clinical assessments.

Eye-hand coordination during a problem solving task

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Neuroplasticity of visuomotor control

Visual deprivation is a relatively rare disorder in humans which occurs when babies are born with cataracts. Studying patients with this condition has revealed insights into the underlying neural mechanisms for both visual and multisensory perception. Indeed, these natural phenomena directly mirror the classic animal experiments that provided fundamental knowledge about visual neurodevelopment.

Our research will establish the extent of neuroplastic adaptations in visuomotor behavior in children followed longitudinally and adults with unilateral and bilateral deprivation amblyopia. This research will help to develop more effective treatments than eye patching for amblyopia.

Patching is the main treatment for amblyopia

Child wearing an eye patch

The relationship between gaze behaviour and expertise

The overarching goal is to facilitate the development of individualized training and evidence-based assessment standards for pilots. Human error is a major cause of aviation accidents inflicting significant economic cost and sometimes resulting in catastrophic consequences. A myriad of factors impact human information processing, thus, gaining a better understanding of pilot’s information processing ability is important for developing effective and efficient training approaches.

Our team is examining a novel solution using eye-tracking technology and computational tools, specifically focusing on tracking changes in gaze behaviour as an indicator of expertise. This research will develop and validate objective and non-intrusive gaze measures that will provide an unbiased assessment of pilot’s competency level regarding situation awareness.

Gaze pattern in a novice and expert performer

Pilot's view from aircraft showing expert and novice performer's' gaze pattern.