The bigger the threat, the longer the gaze? A cross-cultural study of Somalis and Czechs.

ABSTRACT: High fear reaction, preferential attention, or fast detection are only a few of the specific responses which snakes evoke in humans. Previous research has shown that these responses are shared amongst several distinct cultures suggesting the evolutionary origin of the response. However, populations from sub-Saharan Africa have been largely missing in experimental research focused on this issue. In this paper, we focus on the effect of snake threat display on human spontaneous attention. We performed an eye-tracking experiment with participants from Somaliland and the Czechia and investigated whether human attention is swayed towards snakes in a threatening posture. Seventy-one Somalis and 71 Czechs were tested; the samples were matched for gender and comparable in age structure and educati

SUBMITTER: Stolhoferova I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10565226 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature