Study Finds That Making (And Breaking) Eye Contact Keeps Conversations Engaging

A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, "Eye contact marks the rise and fall of shared attention in conversation," shows that periodically breaking eye contact during a conversation will allow for individual creativity and higher levels of engagement. The authors (graduate student Sophie Wohltjen and Professor Thalia Wheatley) were both quoted regarding their study in Scientific American and in Psychology Today. A story about this study was also featured in Dartmouth News and can be found here.