Attention levels are more accurately gauged by heart rate rather than eye movements
In a study funded by Google, researchers discovered that heart rate is a more accurate indicator of a person's attention levels during video advertising than their eye movements. The project, titled "How to Accurately Measure Attention to Video Advertising," compared eight physiological activities to determine if any could accurately measure attention like the electroencephalogram (EEG), the gold standard metric but is expensive and hard to scale.
Participants in the study were attached to sensors measuring brain activity, heart rate, eye movement, facial expressions, and skin conductance while watching ads. Apart from the EEG, only the heart rate monitor proved to give an accurate reading of viewer attention, as fewer beats per minute occurred when participants were engrossed in the ad.
While eye movements are often used to gauge attention, the study found that visual measures like eye contact and blink duration were unreliable, as they could indicate high levels of attention in ads with minimal conscious processing. Heart rate, however, seems to correlate more closely with both attention and conscious processing, according to the researchers. This suggests that heart rate may be a better metric for measuring attention than eye-tracking.
The researchers also found that speaking to viewers provided a "direct and reliable way" to determine if conscious ad processing occurred. As attention spans decline and the number of media platforms increases, the study highlights that measuring attention has become "a new media currency to compare and price media/format options."
Google partnered with the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute for Marketing Science and MediaScience to conduct the study, with Nicole Hartnett, Steven Bellman, Virginia Beal, Rachel Kennedy, Claire Charron, and Duane Varan constituting the research team.
In terms of overall findings, heart rate offers valuable insights into the emotional and cognitive reactions to video advertising, indicating levels of engagement or attention-related arousal. However, heart rate is more of an indirect measure of attention that benefits from being combined with eye-tracking and other behavioral or physiological signals for accuracy and specificity. Eye-tracking remains one of the most direct and precise measures of visual attention. A multimodal approach that integrates heart rate with gaze and other metrics offers the most comprehensive assessment of attention to video ads.
In conclusion, while heart rate on its own is less accurate than eye-tracking at measuring attention, it complements other physiological and behavioral indicators for a more complete understanding of viewer attention during video advertising.
- The study, co-conducted by Google and the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute for Marketing Science, found that heart rate is a more accurate indicator of a person's attention levels during video advertising than eye movements.
- While eye-tracking remains one of the most direct and precise measures of visual attention, the research suggests that heart rate may be a better metric for measuring attention, especially when combined with other physiological and behavioral indicators.
- In the realm of health-and-wellness and mental-health marketing, these findings could potentially aid in understanding the cognitive and emotional responses of consumers to advertisements, improving the effectiveness of ad campaigns.
- The project "How to Accurately Measure Attention to Video Advertising" also demonstrated that speaking directly to viewers provides a "direct and reliable way" to determine if conscious ad processing occurs, offering insight into the science of advertising and media engagement.
