CrowdGaze: A Dual Approach to Studying Gaze Interactions in Stationary and Moving Crowds Using Eye Tracking in Real and Virtual Environments.

• Applicants: Professor Dr. Torsten Wolfgang Kuhlen; Professorin Dr. Anna Sieben
• Subject Area: Social Psychology, Industrial and Organisational Psychology ; Image and Language Processing, Computer Graphics and Visualisation, Human Computer Interaction, Ubiquitous and Wearable Computing
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 563020667

CrowdGaze examines how gaze interactions facilitate non-verbal negotiation of space and social coordination in dense, dynamic crowds, both in real-life and immersive virtual environments. Unlike herd animals with wide visual fields enabling effortless group movement, humans’ forward-facing eyes are optimized for face-to-face communication but are less effective in crowded settings, especially where density exceeds 2–4 people per square meter. Despite these limitations, gaze plays a dual role: it helps individuals interpret movement intentions and coordinate actions, while also conveying social norms, roles, and appropriate behavior. Our project investigates gaze behavior in three everyday scenarios: (A) waiting in dense crowds, (B) following others in unidirectional crowds, and (C) negotiating social norms in queueing situations. In Scenario A, individuals often avoid direct eye contact to reduce discomfort, while still monitoring their surroundings. Scenario B focuses on movement coordination, exploring how gaze indicates changes in walking direction, signals belongingness within groups, and facilitates leadership dynamics. In Scenario C, gaze acts as a social signal to enforce norms—disapproving stares may deter overtaking, while overtakers often avert their gaze to avoid conflict. This interdisciplinary project integrates expertise from social psychology, movement science, and virtual reality. Real-life experiments (REs) with eye tracking will uncover gaze patterns in natural crowd settings. The experiments will then be replicated in virtual reality (VR) under controlled conditions to investigate differences and similarities in gaze behavior between both contexts. Based on these insights, we then aim to develop algorithms that enhance the design of computer-controlled virtual agents embedded as virtual pedestrians, creating more realistic simulations of human interactions in populated spaces. The findings will enhance crowd safety and inform the design of public spaces, while also advancing methods for studying gaze in dynamic environments. Consequently, CrowdGaze significantly contributes to understanding human behavior in real-life and virtual crowds, making it a vital addition to the SPP UGAZE initiative.

• DFG Programme: Priority Programmes
• Subproject of: SPP 2481: Understanding Gaze
• International Connection: France
• Cooperation Partner: Dr. Anne-Hélène Olivier