Clinical Utility of Eye Tracking in Assessing Distractibility in Children with Neurological Disorders or ADHD: A Cross-Sectional Study

This study aims to investigate distractibility quantified by recording and analyzing eye movements during task-irrelevant distraction in children with and without ADHD and in children with and without neurological disorders. Gaze behavior data and press latencies of 141 participants aged 6-17 that were collected during a computerized distraction paradigm with task-irrelevant stimuli (IDistrack) were analyzed. Children using attention-regulating medication were excluded from participation. Data were analyzed for subgroups that were formed based on the presence of neurological disorders and the presence of ADHD separately. Participants with ADHD and participants with neurological disorders spent less time fixating on the target stimuli compared to their peers without ADHD (p = 0.025) or their peers without neurological disorders (p < 0.001). Participants with and without ADHD had equal press latencies (p = 0.79). Participants with neurological disorders had a greater press latency compared to their typically developing peers (p < 0.001). Target fixation duration shows a significant association with parent-reported attention problems (r = -0.39, p < 0.001). We conclude that eye tracking during a distraction task reveals potentially valid clinical information that may contribute to the assessment of dysfunctional attentional processes. Further research on the validity and reliability of this paradigm is recommended.

Automated summary

This study investigates distractibility by analyzing eye movements during task-irrelevant distraction in children with and without ADHD and neurological disorders. The results show that children with ADHD and neurological disorders spend less time fixating on target stimuli compared to their peers without these conditions. Additionally, children with neurological disorders have longer press latencies. The duration of target fixation is significantly associated with parent-reported attention problems.