When do you look where you look? A visual field asymmetry

- Pre-saccadic fixation durations were longer for downward than upward saccades.
- The asymmetry reflects factors not directly related to fixated elements.
- Saccades were more likely to be directed upwards than downwards.
- Directional constraints are important in modelling when the eyes move.

Pre-saccadic fixation durations associated with saccades directed in different directions were compared in three endogenous-attention oriented saccadic scanning tasks (i.e. visual search and scene viewing). Pre-saccadic fixation durations were consistently briefer before the execution of upward saccades, than downward saccades. Saccades also had a higher probability of being directed upwards than downwards. Pre-saccadic fixation durations were symmetric and longer for horizontally-directed saccades. The vertical visual field asymmetry in pre-saccadic fixation durations reflects an influence of factors not directly related to currently fixated elements. The ability to predict pre-saccadic fixation durations is important for computational modelling of real-time saccadic scanning, and the findings make a case for including directional constraints in computational modelling of when the eyes move.