How the brain keeps the world steady when your eyes move

Neural and perceptual mechanisms of spatial stability across eye movements

NIH-funded research Ohio State University · NIH-11132816

This work looks at how your brain keeps objects and their locations steady in your view even though your eyes move a lot.

Quick facts

Grant typeR01 grant
Study typeNIH-funded research
Funding institutionOhio State University NIH-funded
Lab location1 site (Columbus, UNITED STATES)
Project IDNIH-11132816 on NIH RePORTER

What this research studies

You would come to the lab to do short visual tasks while researchers record brain activity using MRI and EEG. They compare how the brain represents where things are and what they look like when your eyes move, including how depth (3D) and attention change those representations. The team combines brain scans and electrical recordings to see when and where spatial information is updated and how higher-level attention influences that process. The findings aim to explain why the world looks stable and how that process may be altered in conditions such as autism or after acquired brain injury.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: Ideal candidates are adults who can tolerate MRI and EEG and who can follow simple visual tasks, including people with autism spectrum conditions or acquired brain injury who notice visual instability or attention differences.

Not a fit: People who cannot undergo MRI (for example because of metal implants, severe claustrophobia, or inability to lie still) would not be able to participate and would not benefit directly.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this work could improve understanding of visual and attention problems and help guide new tests or therapies for people with spatial perception difficulties.

How similar studies have performed: Previous fMRI and EEG studies have shown that brain areas remap visual space across eye movements, and this project extends that work by adding 3D depth and top-down attention elements.

Where this research is happening

Columbus, UNITED STATES

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.
Conditions Acquired brain injuryAutistic Disorder
Last reviewed 2026-06-13 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.