Optimizing Motor Skill Acquisition in Laparoscopic Surgery With Automated Gaze-Based Feedback

Gaze-based training has shown promise for laparoscopic surgery, but personalized gaze feedback to support skill acquisition remains underexplored. This study recruited 30 college students to practice the peg transfer task across two sessions using a prototype system delivering personalized gaze feedback. Participants were assigned to one of three conditions: timely and frequent feedback, delayed and infrequent feedback, or no feedback. The timely feedback group received gaze feedback during training breaks, enabling ongoing behavioral adjustments, whereas the delayed feedback group received feedback once near the end of each session before the final three test trials. The control group received standard task instructions and completion time feedback only. Mixed-effects models showed that timely and frequent feedback produced greater improvement in completion time by the end of Session 1; however, this advantage was no longer significant by Session 2. These findings suggest that automated gaze-based feedback may enhance early laparoscopic skill acquisition.