Accession Number:

ADA017396

Title:

Learning of Autonomic Behavior.

Descriptive Note:

Final technical rept. 1 Jul 73-31 Oct 74,

Corporate Author:

HARVARD COLL CAMBRIDGE MASS

Personal Author(s):

• Schwartz,Gary E.

Report Date:

1974-10-31

Pagination or Media Count:

16.0

Abstract:

The purpose of the work is to determine whether analysis of patterns of facial temperature assessed unobtrusively using thermography equipment can successfully differentiate approval and disapproval in the human subject. This work is considered preliminary to a possible later biocybernetic application of thermography to man-machine interaction. Two pilot experiments were conducted to test the feasibility of this approach. Facial thermographs were collected using polariod photographs of the color coded thermal patterns. In experiment I, 32 subjects listened to a tape recording of a person laughing and crying, and also self-generated happy and sad imagery and overt facial expressions, while thermographs were taken. Preliminary hand scoring of the color pictures revealed that happy emotions were accompanied by relative facial warming, particularly over the left mouth region, whereas sad emotions were accompanied by relative facial cooling.

Descriptors:

• *Behavior
• *Body temperature
• *Emotions
• Face(Anatomy)
• Thermography
• Psychophysiology
• Autonomic nervous system
• Response(Biology)

Subject Categories:

• Psychology
• Anatomy and Physiology

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE