What occurs to the eyes when accommodation is actively engaged?

When accommodation is actively engaged, the primary action involves the eyes converging. This process is essential for focusing on near objects. Accommodation occurs when the ciliary muscles contract, leading to a more rounded shape of the crystalline lens. This increased curvature allows the lens to refract light more strongly, facilitating clear vision at close distances.

Convergence of the eyes ensures that the visual axes align on the object being viewed, allowing for proper depth perception and a single, clear image. This physiological response is a crucial aspect of vision, particularly when analyzing text or other nearby items.

In contrast, the eyes diverging would occur when focusing on distant objects, which is the opposite of what happens during accommodation. The flattening of the crystalline lens is characteristic of focusing on distant objects, not near ones. Similarly, pupil dilation generally takes place under low-light conditions or during certain emotional states, rather than during the process of accommodation which typically involves constriction of the pupils to improve depth of focus.