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I always used to find it difficult to walk through a crowd of oncoming people. I'd inevitably get caught in a "dance" with somebody as we tried to figure out wh

I always used to find it difficult to walk through a crowd of oncoming people. I'd inevitably get caught in a "dance" with somebody as we tried to figure out which way the other person was trying to go. My problems were greatly alleviated once I figured out this one weird trick for navigating through pedestrians: stare a path through the crowd. People will subconsciously move out of your way. It's as if they pay more attention to your eyes than the actual direction your body is moving.

spuz 8y ago
The reason this works is that the oncoming person thinks you have not seem them. If someone is coming directly towards you and you think you have seen them before they have seen you, it makes sense that you should move out of their way rather than wait for them to eventually notice you. Also, when you do move, you are guaranteed that they will not move in the same direction (because they would need a little extra time to spot you and perform the evasive maneuver). I don't think this observation necessarily supports the extramission theory of vision described in the study though. You could achieve exactly the same result by looking at your feet, coving your eyes or wearing a blindfold; anyone coming towards you is still going to get out of your way.
- deleted 8y ago
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- 12298765 8y ago
  Except that this technique has worked for me after I look at a person too. We make eye contact, then I look to their right and they automatically pass on my left. I think it's more subconscious than you're making it out to be.
  - chillacy 8y ago
    I used this technique to cross the street in Vietnam, oncoming motorcycles look where they’re going, and they trust that you will too. Looking at an oncoming motorcycle just results in both of you coming to a stop. Guess the ski instructors were right: you go where you look.
tapland 8y ago
A relative of mine had asked their psychologist about them feeling that they kept dodging and being stuck by people while walking in crowded areas, and they were recommended to look up at a point above the oncoming people, in the direction you are heading, and that after trying it people were suddenly getting out of their way when they walk.
nkrisc 8y ago
I can't upvote this enough. I learned that trick on this very site long ago and it works wonders. I just stare straight ahead past the crowd and they part like the Red Sea. The last leg of my commute has me walking against the massive flow of people from a rail station so it's served me very well.
blattimwind 8y ago
You look where you want to go -- same with driving a car or bike. If you look elsewhere too long you'll run into something/someone. What is really noticeable is some people look at the floor in front of them. These stand out in an oncoming crowd because they never flow around obstacles in their path, they walk towards them and turn 0-4 m before collision.
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- techdmn 8y ago
  This. There is a term for failing to look where you want to go, the result of which is going where you are looking: target fixation. It's a frequent cause of motorcycle crashes, and I see it quite a bit at the track. A rider gets scared, and starts to look at something off track - the grass, a rock, etc. Panic sets in, they are unable to avert their gaze and are drawn, as if by magnetism, into the very thing they would most like to avoid. Another variation of "look where you want to go" is "look through the crash". If a couple of people get tangled up in front of you, don't watch the crash! You'll likely join it. Look through the crash, to where you want to go.

spuz 8y ago

The reason this works is that the oncoming person thinks you have not seem them. If someone is coming directly towards you and you think you have seen them before they have seen you, it makes sense that you should move out of their way rather than wait for them to eventually notice you. Also, when you do move, you are guaranteed that they will not move in the same direction (because they would need a little extra time to spot you and perform the evasive maneuver). I don't think this observation necessarily supports the extramission theory of vision described in the study though. You could achieve exactly the same result by looking at your feet, coving your eyes or wearing a blindfold; anyone coming towards you is still going to get out of your way.

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
12298765 8y ago
Except that this technique has worked for me after I look at a person too. We make eye contact, then I look to their right and they automatically pass on my left. I think it's more subconscious than you're making it out to be.
- chillacy 8y ago
  I used this technique to cross the street in Vietnam, oncoming motorcycles look where they’re going, and they trust that you will too. Looking at an oncoming motorcycle just results in both of you coming to a stop. Guess the ski instructors were right: you go where you look.

tapland 8y ago

A relative of mine had asked their psychologist about them feeling that they kept dodging and being stuck by people while walking in crowded areas, and they were recommended to look up at a point above the oncoming people, in the direction you are heading, and that after trying it people were suddenly getting out of their way when they walk.

nkrisc 8y ago

I can't upvote this enough. I learned that trick on this very site long ago and it works wonders. I just stare straight ahead past the crowd and they part like the Red Sea. The last leg of my commute has me walking against the massive flow of people from a rail station so it's served me very well.

blattimwind 8y ago

You look where you want to go -- same with driving a car or bike. If you look elsewhere too long you'll run into something/someone. What is really noticeable is some people look at the floor in front of them. These stand out in an oncoming crowd because they never flow around obstacles in their path, they walk towards them and turn 0-4 m before collision.

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
techdmn 8y ago
This. There is a term for failing to look where you want to go, the result of which is going where you are looking: target fixation. It's a frequent cause of motorcycle crashes, and I see it quite a bit at the track. A rider gets scared, and starts to look at something off track - the grass, a rock, etc. Panic sets in, they are unable to avert their gaze and are drawn, as if by magnetism, into the very thing they would most like to avoid. Another variation of "look where you want to go" is "look through the crash". If a couple of people get tangled up in front of you, don't watch the crash! You'll likely join it. Look through the crash, to where you want to go.