Which term describes the step-like pursuit movements used to follow a moving object?

• A. Nystagmus
• B. Gaze-Evoked Pursuit
• C. Smooth Pursuit
• D. Cogwheeling

Answer: (D)

Step-like pursuit movements are described by gaze-evoked pursuit. When following a moving object, the eye sometimes can’t perfectly match the target’s velocity in a single smooth motion. Instead, it makes small corrective saccades to re-center the image on the fovea, producing a stair-step or step-like trajectory rather than a flawlessly smooth glide. This pattern is characteristic of gaze-evoked pursuit because the eye is effectively tracking with intermittent jumps to maintain fixation as the object moves.

This differs from smooth pursuit, which would be a continuous, uninterrupted tracking motion; and from nystagmus, which is an involuntary, rhythmic oscillation. Cogwheeling isn’t the appropriate term for describing this aspect of pursuit.