Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Foveal fixation patterns of forensic psychiatric patients (n = 28) were recorded during stimulus exposure to three complex scenes. The aim was to determine if the patients remained focused on scene elements related to the characteristics of their victims. Patient diagnoses were of schizophrenia, schizoaffective, or bipolar disorder, or of antisocial or borderline personality disorder. A Forensic Control group (n = 16) was compared against an Attack on Female group (n = 12) consisting of patients who had threatened or attacked an adult female unrelated to them. During each 10 s stimulus exposure an eye tracker measured the duration and sequence of foveal fixation on each scene element. For the first stimulus scene, depicting a pagan bacchanal, the Attack on Female group had longer foveal fixations on a female being assaulted by a bestial male, F(1, 26) = 6.74, p <.05, η2 =.21. For the second stimulus scene, depicting a subway station, the Attack on Female group had longer foveal fixations on a visibly anxious female figure, F(1, 24) = 5.18, p <.05, η2 =.18. For the third stimulus scene, depicting three women preparing a holiday dinner, the Attack on Female group had longer foveal fixations on the prominently displayed throat of one of the females, F(1, 24) = 13.99, p <.05, η2 =.37. The findings demonstrate that forensic psychiatric patients, who had attacked women unrelated to them, have longer visual fixations on scene elements that are related to their victim characteristics.
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,090
Funder: City University of New York
OpenAlex ID: W7223305739