Eye-tracking in statistical graphics research : a scoping review

Hvastja, Leon (author), Štrumbelj, Erik (author), Žabkar, Jure (author)

Quantitative data analysis increasingly relies on statistical graphics, necessitating a deeper understanding of their effectiveness. Eye-tracking is a valuable tool for exploring how users interact with these visualizations. However, despite several systematic reviews of the fields of statistical visualizations and the application of eye-tracking technology, a review specifically focusing on eye-tracking in statistical graphics research has been lacking. This article addresses this gap with a systematic PRISMA-based scoping review of 114 empirical studies, critically examining their methodologies, key findings, and implications. We conclude that while eye-tracking offers profound insights, improved methodological practices, including more robust experimental designs, appropriate statistical modeling, and broader participant sampling, are essential to unlock its full potential in advancing our understanding of statistical graphics.

• Language: English
• Keywords: visualization, statistical graphics, eye-tracking, scoping review, usability
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FRI - Faculty of Computer and Information Science
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: 34 str.
• Numbering: Vol. , no.
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-182337
• UDC: 004.5:004.9
• ISSN on article: 1044-7318
• DOI: 10.1080/10447318.2026.2649927
• COBISS.SI-ID: 277144579
• Publication date in RUL: 07.05.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: International journal of human-computer interaction
• Shortened title: Int. j. hum.-comput. interact.
• Publisher: Ablex Pub. Corp.
• ISSN: 1044-7318
• COBISS.SI-ID: 683029

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
• Description: The most restrictive Creative Commons license. This only allows people to download and share the work for no commercial gain and for no other purposes.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: vizualizacija, statistična grafika, sledenje očem, pregled literature, uporabnost