CRC Facial Expression Analysis Workshop #1: Introduction & Overview

The Communication Research Center (CRC) is equipped with the technology, software, facilities, and expertise to aid Boston University faculty and student researchers in conducting studies using biometric methods. There is vast potential for researchers in the field of communication and related disciplines to utilize these methods in order to gain more holistic insights into how people feel, think, and behave toward media technologies and messages.

Led by the CRC’s Lab & Research Manager, Susie Blair (susieb@bu.edu), this semester’s workshops will focus on three different biometric modules offered via the iMotions biometric research platform—Facial Expression Analysis, Eye Tracking, and Galvanic Skin Response (GSR). Each module will have two dedicated workshops (one conceptual overview, one guided practicum).

In this introductory workshop, participants will learn:

—The theoretical and technical basics of facial expression analysis

—The ways in which facial expression analysis can be used to augment traditional communication research methods (e.g., focus groups, interviews, and surveys) to form a more nuanced understanding of respondents' reactions and behaviors

—The various forms of data that can be gathered via facial expression analysis technology, including the occurrence of 7 core emotions (joy, anger, surprise, disgust, contempt, fear, sadness), engagement, valence, attention, and facial expressions (e.g., brow furrow, jaw drop, lip pucker, etc.)