Rudolf Groner (born July 26, 1942,

Glarus Glarus (; ; ; ; ) is the capital of the canton of Glarus in Switzerland. Since 1 January 2011, the municipality of Glarus incorporates the former municipalities of Ennenda, Netstal and Riedern.Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

) is a Swiss

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...

, specialized in

cognitive psychology Cognitive psychology is the scientific study of human mental processes such as attention, language use, memory, perception, problem solving, creativity, and reasoning. Cognitive psychology originated in the 1960s in a break from behaviorism, whi ...

and

media psychology Media psychology is a branch of psychology that focuses on the interactions between human behavior, media, and technology. Media psychology is not limited to mass media or media content; it includes all forms of mediated communication and media t ...

Professional life

Groner received a PhD in psychology at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

, in 1966. From 1968 to 1970 he was postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Advanced Studies in Theoretical Psychology at the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta (also known as U of A or UAlberta, ) is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta, and Henry Marshall Tory, t ...

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, and member of the Michigan Mathematical Psychology Program in 1969. In 1981 he became Professor of Psychology at the

University of Bern The University of Bern (, , ) is a public university, public research university in the Switzerland, Swiss capital of Bern. It was founded in 1834. It is regulated and financed by the canton of Bern. It is a comprehensive university offering a br ...

. He was invited Visiting Professor at

Humboldt University The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public university, public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III of Prussia, Frederick W ...

Berlin, at the

University of Wollongong The University of Wollongong (UOW) is an Australian public university, public research university located in the coastal city of Wollongong, New South Wales, approximately south of Sydney. , the university had an enrolment of more than 33,000 s ...

, Australia, at

Kyoto University , or , is a National university, national research university in Kyoto, Japan. Founded in 1897, it is one of the former Imperial Universities and the second oldest university in Japan. The university has ten undergraduate faculties, eighteen gra ...

and

Nagoya University , abbreviated to or NU, is a Japanese national research university located in Chikusa-ku, Nagoya. It was established in 1939 as the last of the nine Imperial Universities in the then Empire of Japan, and is now a Designated National Universit ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. From 1998 – 2001 he was appointed Director of the Swiss National Postdoctoral Program "Cognitive Psychology - Basic and Applied Aspects". In 1971 he was the founder of Visllab, the laboratory for the study of cognitive processes and eye movements at the University of Bern. In 1980, Rudolf Groner initiated an interdisciplinary network called "European Group of Scientists active in Eye Movement Research". This group includes scientists who use eye movement registration as a research tool and develop models based on oculomotor data obtained from a wide spectrum of phenomena, ranging from the neurophysiological to the perceptual and the cognitive level. The group's focus is on the exchange of information on current research, equipment and software. Starting 1981, the group organizes a biennial conference at different locations all over Europe (https://www.eyemovement.org/ecem.html). Over the years, the group published ten edited books. Starting in 2008, Rudolf Groner was founder and chief editor o
Journal of Eye Movement Research (JEMR)
�an interdisciplinary open access journal. After becoming emeritus at the

in 2007 Rudolf Groner is now working together with Marina Groner and former collaborators in a

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

of his former laboratory
scians Ltd.
focussing on the transfer of fundamental research to applied settings.

Research

From 1970 to 1990 Rudolf Groner's research interests focused on the

mathematical modeling A mathematical model is an abstract and concrete, abstract description of a concrete system using mathematics, mathematical concepts and language of mathematics, language. The process of developing a mathematical model is termed ''mathematical m ...

of complex cognitive activities by elementary modules. These modules consist of basic perceptual and attentional processes, and the visual information input is measured by parameters of

eye fixations An eye is a sensory organ that allows an organism to perceive visual information. It detects light and converts it into electro-chemical impulses in neurons (neurones). It is part of an organism's visual system. In higher organisms, the eye ...

. The underlying processes are assumed as the generating and testing of

hypotheses A hypothesis (: hypotheses) is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. A scientific method, scientific hypothesis must be based on observations and make a testable and reproducible prediction about reality, in a process beginning with an educ ...

. In cooperation with Marina Groner he developed a hypothetico-deductive theory of cognitive activity based on a set of

axioms An axiom, postulate, or assumption is a statement that is taken to be true, to serve as a premise or starting point for further reasoning and arguments. The word comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning 'that which is thought worthy or f ...

from which

probability distribution In probability theory and statistics, a probability distribution is a Function (mathematics), function that gives the probabilities of occurrence of possible events for an Experiment (probability theory), experiment. It is a mathematical descri ...

s of

eye movement Eye movement includes the voluntary or involuntary movement of the eyes. Eye movements are used by a number of organisms (e.g. primates, rodents, flies, birds, fish, cats, crabs, octopus) to fixate, inspect and track visual objects of inte ...

parameters were derived and compared with

empirical data Empirical evidence is evidence obtained through sense experience or experimental procedure. It is of central importance to the sciences and plays a role in various other fields, like epistemology and law. There is no general agreement on how the ...

of measured

eye fixation Fixation or visual fixation is the maintaining of the Visual perception, gaze on a single location. An animal can exhibit visual fixation if it possess a Fovea centralis, fovea in the anatomy of their eye. The fovea is typically located at the c ...

distributions. In addition to eye tracking data, the same hypothetico-deductive analysis was applied to other behavioral parameters. The distribution of time spent during

problem solving Problem solving is the process of achieving a goal by overcoming obstacles, a frequent part of most activities. Problems in need of solutions range from simple personal tasks (e.g. how to turn on an appliance) to complex issues in business an ...

and the probability of erroneous solutions could be predicted by one and the same model that assumes minimal short term memory load which, however, must be compensated by extensive visual scanning of available information from the environment. Groner, Walder & Groner and Menz & Groner extended Lawrence Stark’s concept of scanpaths to two different classes of scanning processes: local scanpaths which are assumed to operate on the perceptual input bottom-up on a narrow time scale, and global scanpaths driven by cognitive processes top-down and operating on an extended time scale. In a series of experiments they demonstrated the relation of basic visual processes to eye movement control. More recently Groner and his colleagues explored new ways of applying

eye tracking Eye tracking is the process of measuring either the point of gaze (where one is looking) or the motion of an eye relative to the head. An eye tracker is a device for measuring eye positions and eye movement. Eye trackers are used in research ...

usability Usability can be described as the capacity of a system to provide a condition for its users to perform the tasks safely, effectively, and efficiently while enjoying the experience. In software engineering, usability is the degree to which a softw ...

research. In another line of research, Rudolf Groner, Marina Groner and Walter F. Bischof investigated the interdisciplinary aspects and the historical roots of

heuristic A heuristic or heuristic technique (''problem solving'', '' mental shortcut'', ''rule of thumb'') is any approach to problem solving that employs a pragmatic method that is not fully optimized, perfected, or rationalized, but is nevertheless ...

thinking and applied the distinction between

algorithm In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm () is a finite sequence of Rigour#Mathematics, mathematically rigorous instructions, typically used to solve a class of specific Computational problem, problems or to perform a computation. Algo ...

ic versus

approaches as a

cognitive style Cognitive style or thinking style is a concept used in cognitive psychology to describe the way individuals think, perceive and remember information. Cognitive style differs from cognitive ability (or level), the latter being measured by aptitude ...

variable assessed and validated by a

questionnaire A questionnaire is a research instrument that consists of a set of questions (or other types of prompts) for the purpose of gathering information from respondents through survey or statistical study. A research questionnaire is typically a mix of ...

.Groner, R., & Groner, M. (1991). Heuristische versus algorithmische Orientierung als Dimension des individuellen kognitiven Stils. In: K. Grawe, N. Semmer, R. Hänni (Hrsg.), Über die richtige Art, Psychologie zu betreiben. Göttingen: Hogrefe

Selected publications

*Groner, R. (1978). Hypothesen im Denkprozess. Grundlagen einer verallgemeinerten Theorie auf der Basis elementarer Informationsverarbeitung. Bern, Stuttgart & Wien: Huber. *Groner, R., & Groner, M. (1982). Towards a hypothetico-deductive theory of cognitive activity. In R. Groner & P. Fraisse (Eds.), Cognition and eye movements. Amsterdam: North Holland. *Groner, R., Groner, M., & Bischof, W.F. (1983). Methods of heuristics. Hillsdale N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum. *Groner, R., & Groner, M. (1983). A stochastic hypothesis testing model for multi-term series problems, based on eye fixations. In Groner, R., Menz, C., Fisher, D., & Monty, R.A. (Eds.). Eye movements and psychological functions: International views. Hillsdale N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum. *Groner, R., Walder, F., & Groner, M. (1984). Looking at faces: Local and global aspects of scanpaths. In A.G. Gale & F. Johnson (Eds.), Theoretical and applied aspects of eye movement research. Amsterdam: North Holland. *Menz, C., & Groner, R. (1985). The effects of stimulus characteristics, task requirements and individual differences on scanning patterns. In R. Groner, G.W. McConkie & Ch. Menz (Eds.), Eye movements and human information processing. Amsterdam: North Holland. *Groner, R., & Groner, M. T. (1989). Attention and eye movement control: an overview. ''European Archives of Psychiatry and Neurological Sciences'', ''239''(1), 9-16. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF0173973
PMID 2676541
* Groner, R., Groner, M. T., Bischof, W. F., & Di Lollo, V. (1990). On the relation between metacontrast masking and suppression of visible persistence. ''Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 16''(2), 381–390. https://doi.org/10.1037/0096-1523.16.2.38
PMID 2142206
* Groner, R., & Groner, M. (1991). Heuristische versus algorithmische Orientierung als Dimension des individuellen kognitiven Stils. In K. Grawe, N. Semmer, R. Hänni (Hrsg.), Über die richtige Art, Psychologie zu betreiben. Göttingen: Hogrefe. *Wright, S. F., & Groner, R. (Eds.). (1993). Facets of dyslexia and its remediation. Elsevier. * Groner, M. T., Groner, R., & Von Mühlenen, A. (2008). The effect of spatial frequency content on parameters of eye movements. ''Psychological Research'', ''72''(6), 601-608. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-008-0167-
PMID 18855008
* Siegenthaler, E. & Groner, R. (2009). Multifunctional usability analysis and its application to the comparison of eBooks with conventional books. In Liversedge, J.P. (Ed.). Abstracts of the Fifteenth European Conference on Eye Movements, Southampton, August 24–26, 2009. ''Journal of Eye Movement Research'', 3, special issue, 70. * Groner, R., & Siegenthaler, E. (2009). Improving the usability of eLearning tools: The Multifunctional Analysis and its application in distance teaching. Proceedings of the ICDE/EADTU Conference in Maastricht, June 2009. * Siegenthaler, E., Wurtz, P., & Groner, R. (2010). Improving the usability of e-book readers. ''Journal of Usability Studies'', ''6''(1), 25-38
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* Siegenthaler, E., Wurtz, P., Bergamin, P., & Groner, R. (2011). Comparing reading processes on e-ink displays and print. ''Displays, 32''(5), 268–273. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.displa.2011.05.005 *Siegenthaler, E., Costela, F. M., McCamy, M. B., Di Stasi, L. L., Otero‐Millan, J., Sonderegger, Groner, R, Macknik, S. & Martinez‐Conde, S. (2014). Task difficulty in mental arithmetic affects microsaccadic rates and magnitudes. ''European Journal of Neuroscience'', ''39''(2), 287-294. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejn.1239
PMID 24438491
*Burch, M., Chuang, L. L., Duchowski, A., Weiskopf, D., & Groner, R. (2018). Eye tracking and visualization: Introduction to the special thematic issue. ''Journal of Eye Movement Research'', ''10''(5)1. https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.10.5.
PMID 33828670PMCID PMC7141078
*Fink, L. K., Lange, E. B., & Groner, R. (2019). The application of eye-tracking in music research. ''Journal of Eye Movement Research'', ''11''(2)1. https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.11.2.
PMID 33828684PMCID PMC7725399
*Martinez-Conde, S., Engbert, R., & Groner, R. (2020). Microsaccades: Empirical research and methodological advances - Introduction to part 1 of the thematic special issue. ''Journal of Eye Movement Research'', ''12''(6)1. https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.12.6.
PMID 33828747PMCID PMC7944665
*Krueger, E., Schneider, A., Sawyer, B. D., Chavaillaz, A., Sonderegger, A., Groner, R., & Hancock, P. A. (2019). Microsaccades distinguish looking from seeing. ''Journal of Eye Movement Research'', ''12''(6)2. https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.12.6.
PMID 33828752PMCID PMC7962679
*Jaschinski, W., & Groner, R. (2020). Vergence eye movements: From basic science to clinical application - Foreword to the special issue. ''Journal of Eye Movement Research'', ''12''(4)0. https://doi.org/10.16910/jemr.12.4.
PMID 33828745PMCID PMC7881834

References

External links

Journal of Eye Movement Research
{{DEFAULTSORT:Groner, Rudolf Living people 1942 births People from Glarus Swiss psychologists University of Vienna alumni Academic staff of the University of Bern