Eye contact is a fundamental aspect of nonverbal communication and therefore important for understanding human interaction. Eye contact has been the subject of research in many disciplines, including communication sciences, social psychology, and psychiatry, and a variety of techniques have been used to measure it. The choice of measurement method has consequences for research outcomes and their interpretation. To ensure that research findings align with study aims and populations, it is essential that methodological choices are well substantiated. Therefore, to enhance the effective examination of eye contact, we performed a literature review of the methods used to study eye contact. We searched Medline, PsycINFO and Web of Science for empirical peer-reviewed articles published in English that described quantitative studies on human eye contact and included a methodological description. The identified studies (N = 109) used two approaches to assess eye contact: direct, i.e., assessing eye contact while it is occurring, and indirect, i.e., assessing eye contact retrospectively (e.g., from video recordings). Within these categories, eight specific techniques were distinguished. Variation was found regarding the reciprocity of eye contact between two individuals, the involvement of an assessor and the behavior of participants while being studied. Measures not involving the interactors in assessment of eye contact and have a higher spatial and temporal resolution, such as eye tracking, have gained popularity. Our results show wide methodological diversity regarding the measurement of eye contact. Although studies often define eye contact as gaze towards an exact location, this may not do justice to the subjective character of eye contact. The various methodologies have hardly ever been compared, limiting the ability to compare findings between studies. Future studies should take notice of the controversy surrounding eye contact measures.

中文翻译：

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人际互动中眼神接触的测量：范围回顾

眼神交流是非语言交流的基本方面，因此对于理解人类互动至关重要。眼神交流一直是包括通信科学，社会心理学和精神病学在内的许多学科的研究主题，并且已使用多种技术对其进行测量。测量方法的选择会对研究结果及其解释产生影响。为确保研究结果与研究目标和人群相符，必须对方法选择进行充分证实。因此，为了增强眼神接触的有效检查，我们对研究眼神接触的方法进行了文献综述。我们搜索了Medline，PsycINFO和Web of Science用于以英语发表的经验性同行评审文章，描述了关于人眼接触的定量研究，并包括了方法论上的描述。确定的研究（ñ = 109）使用两种方法来评估眼神接触：直接（即在发生眼神时评估眼神接触）和间接（即回顾性地评估眼神接触（例如，从录像中））。在这些类别中，区分了八种特定技术。研究发现，两个人之间眼神交流的互惠性，评估者的参与程度和参与者的行为存在差异。不涉及交互作用器以评估眼神接触并具有较高时空分辨率的措施（例如眼动追踪）已获得普及。我们的结果显示出有关眼神接触测量的广泛方法学多样性。尽管研究通常将眼神交流定义为凝视准确的位置，但这可能无法正确地理解眼神交流的主观特征。几乎没有比较过各种方法，从而限制了在研究之间比较发现的能力。未来的研究应注意有关眼神接触措施的争议。