Children's detection of on-face and off-face gazes

Assessed the accurate detection of gaze direction for 24 6-yr-old boys in 2 groups, using an on-face vs off-face gaze detection task. Compared to adults in a prior study (J. J. Gibson and A. D. Pick, 1963) who were tested with an on-face vs off-face detection task, and compared to children and adults in a prior study (C. Lord, 1974) who were tested with only an on-face detection task, these children were less accurate at detecting deviations from direct eye contact from an adult as well as a child peer. Discussion focuses on the functional equivalence of various degrees of off-face gazing and eye contact for young children.