Children’s visual attention in street-crossing tasks: insights from virtual reality and eye tracking

This study examined visual attention in children's street-crossing behaviour using a virtual reality (VR) environment with integrated eye-tracking. We hypothesized that older children would spend more time and a higher proportion of time focusing on vehicles, that boys would spend less time looking at vehicles than girls, and that greater visual attention would be associated with fewer dangerous crossings. A total of 377 children aged 7 to 10 completed six VR street-crossing trials, during which their gaze behaviour was recorded and analysed using linear regression. Results showed that older children spent a higher proportion of time looking at vehicles, indicating developmental improvements in attention. Boys spent less total time focusing on vehicles. Greater visual attention to vehicles was associated with fewer dangerous crossings, underscoring its role in pedestrian safety. These findings highlight developmental differences in gaze and the importance of attention to traffic-relevant elements.