AN EXPERIMENT ON PSYCHOLOGICAL GAZE MOTION: A RE-EXAMINATION OF ITEM SELECTION BEHAVIOR OF RESTAURANT CUSTOMERS

This study introduces a model on psychological gaze motion in which restaurant customers are observed as they make their menu selections. The experiment was conducted at various restaurants in Seoul, Korea. The goal is to determine whether a customer's selection of a menu item is systematically guided by the item's position on the menu or by chance. Gaze movement models such as this describe how customers move their eyes across the menu and how that plays a role in their ultimate choice of a menu item. Earlier studies suggest that in general, the upper part of a menu often catches the initial attention of the customer. However, this study finds that the middle part is the first spot of eye contact for all three types of menu panels studied. The findings also reveal a chasm between customers and menu suppliers with regard to menu choice. While menu suppliers believed that on the first glance, customers tend to gaze at the upper left part of a menu, this study shows that customers in fact are more inclined to focus their eyes on the center and as such, are more likely to choose items from that location. These results are important since most menu planners consider the first point of customer eye contact as the best spot to place their most strategic menu items. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]