Visual search characteristics in two-way skeet shooters of different performance levels during simulated target viewing

Background: Visual search plays a critical role in skeet shooting. Athletes must quickly and rapidly detect, track, and respond to fast-moving targets. Understanding how visual search characteristics differ between shooters of different performance levels during target viewing can provide insight into visuomotor control and visual information processing in dynamic tasks, particularly in skeet shooting. Methods: A 2 (level of performance: expert, novice) × 2 (target position: high house, low house) × 2 (target type: single target, double target) mixed experimental design was adopted. Differences in eye-movement behavior between expert and novice skeet shooters were analyzed using eye-tracking technology during simulated tasks of target viewing. Results: The expert group had the lowest reaction time, mean saccade amplitude, number of fixations, pupil diameter, and number of blink compared to the novice counterparts, and the experts had the longest fixation time. There was a variation in fixation and blink count among the target conditions, with significant main effects of target condition. Repeated-measures analysis indicated that there was a significant main effect of group across all the eye-movement and behavioral indicators and no significant group x target condition interaction. Analysis of visualization revealed that highly skilled shooters had more focused gaze patterns, smaller gaze patterns, and more consistent fixation patterns. Conversely, beginner shooters had a more diffuse gaze, more scattered fixation points, and more complicated gaze patterns. Conclusion: Visual search strategies vary significantly between expert and novice skeet shooters during simulated target-viewing experiments. Compared to amateur shooters, expert shooters exhibit longer fixation times, fewer fixations, smaller saccade amplitudes, less blinking, smaller pupil sizes, and more focused and regular gaze paths. These properties suggest shorter and more efficient visual search behavior, more profound information, and more stable gaze organization during target tracking, reflecting more efficient task-relevant visual information processing.