Navigating the Online World: Gaze, Fixations, and Performance Differences between Younger and Older Users

ABSTRACTThe world’s populations and workforces are aging and older adults are now the fastest growing group of internet users. Unfortunately, age-related declines may prevent older adults from performing web-based tasks with the same ease as their younger counterparts. Recent studies have suggested that peripheral navigation may exacerbate age-related online performance gaps as older adults fail to adequately search peripheral elements. Such studies have however relied on the use of preexisting websites with no control for layout, complexity, or prior familiarity. This study tested whether age-related differences in online performance and search behavior exist across various navigational layouts. Participants (N = 47) completed four online tasks with purpose-built websites of equivalent difficulty, length, and content type, yet with varying navigational layouts (center; left-periphery; top-periphery; inconsistent). Participants’ performance (i.e., accuracy/efficiency), search behavior (i.e., eye gaze/fixa...