Does Your Smile Mean That You’re Happy? – a Multi-Channel Analysis of Emotional Reactions

Abstract

In Information Systems (IS) research, emotions are primarily measured using facial expressions of participants or self-reported survey results. To unite both measurement foci, we analyze the impact of facial emotional reactions to computer-induced stimuli on self-reported evaluations towards the respective stimulus by using a multi-method experimental approach with multi-channel analysis. We collected emotional expressions of happiness of 176 participants using eye-tracker and webcam technology together with a post-experimental survey. We contribute to IS research by supplementing self-reported measures of emotion with a physical emotional measure in response to a system’s feature, and by relating these measured emotional physical responses to individual behavior.