Research and reports

Understanding and measuring cognitive load through eye tracking

Summary

Every decision, lesson, and task places demands on our limited working memory. When the mental effort — or cognitive load — is too high, performance drops. Too low, and engagement suffers.

This comprehensive guide explores how eye tracking provides a real-time, non-intrusive way to measure cognitive load and unlock insights into learning, decision-making, and performance.

What’s inside

A clear introduction to cognitive load theory
A comparison of measurement methods (self-report, performance, physiological)
How eye metrics like pupil dilation, fixations, and saccades reveal mental effort
Practical tips for research in both labs and real-world settings
Real-world applications in education, UX, healthcare, and safety

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Written by

Dr. Hellen Vergoossen, Ph.D.

Read time

6 min

Type

Research and reports

Products

Eye trackers

Solutions

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Dr. Hellen Vergoossen, PhD.
Research Scientist,Tobii
Dr. Hellen Vergoossen is a research scientist at Tobii where she assists researchers with the implementation of their eye tracking projects through training and consultations. Dr. Vergoossen has a PhD in psychology from Stockholm University, investigating the effect of language on the processing of social information. Besides eye tracking, she has methodological knowledge of EEG, fMRI, accelerometry, psycholinguistics, and statistical analysis.

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