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VALUE MEASUREMENT VS. EDA
Electrodermal Activity (EDA) uses electrodes to measure changes in sweat gland activity & determine arousal.
WHAT IS ELECTRODERMAL ACTIVITY (EDA)?
EDA as used in neuromarketing involves measuring changes in sweat gland activity to determine emotional arousal - or the intensity of an experience (whether good or bad). Though EDA can serve as a measure of arousal, it's important to understand that changes in EDA can be affected by a variety of stimuli beyond emotions, including stress, changes in temperature, and physical exertion. Most importantly, EDA is a poor predictor of behavior.
EDA involves placing electrodes on two fingers of a consumer’s hand and recording changes in the flow of low-voltage current between them. The premise is that having more sweat in the hands leads to higher levels of electrodermal activity, and that this signals elevated levels of arousal.
EDA research is generally conducted in a temperature-controlled environment where consumers are asked to stay still. Recent technology advances have led to the development of mobile wrist-based devices; however, the sweat glands most activated by arousal are located on the hands and feet, meaning these may be less sensitive for detecting meaningful changes.
EDA is the umbrella term for this methodology; however, it is also sometimes also referred to as skin conductance, galvanic skin response (GSR), or more broadly as biometrics.
THE BENEFIT
EDA can reflect autonomic nervous system arousal which can be associated with emotional or physiologic states of alertness.
EDA requires that your audience is fit with electrodes on their fingers, making it simpler than some neuroscience technologies.
Some providers offer wrist-based tools; however, these are less able to detect meaningful changes.
THE DRAWBACK
EDA requires access to costly equipment, pre-scheduled lab time, and trained professionals to apply the finger electrodes and interpret the data, which adds subjectivity to results.
EDA requires a specific temperature-controlled environment that can take away from the experience of your audience while viewing your content.
Using EDA to measure real-world reactions leads to noisy data, and devices created to allow for mobile measurement are less accurate.
Processing data from EDA can take weeks and requires professionals to decipher data, and often factors like age, gender, and skin type can impact baselines levels, making it difficult to interpret results.
With EDA, you can identify the presence of arousal, but you cannot determine whether that arousal was good or bad. You will know that your audience experienced a response, but you will not know whether it was positive or negative.
DINNER PARTY FACT FOR BRAIN NERDS:
It was first discovered that human skin was electrically active in 1849 by German physician Emil du Bois-Reymond. When his subject was immersed in a zinc sulfate solution, Dubois found an electric current between a relaxed limb and a limb whose muscles contracted.
(Must have been freaky to see for the first time...)
HOW VALUE MEASUREMENT IS DIFFERENT
Value Measurement is not based on simply detecting a change in arousal. It does not stop at raw biometrics to infer emotion. It doesn't require complicated tools or specialized training to collect or interpret the data. It doesn't have to be anchored in a lab, and applications of when it works aren't limited.
Value Measurement provides an in-the-moment measure of real-time value people are getting from an experience, as it unfolds. It's easy to deploy anywhere, anytime. And it predicts what your audience will remember and do with over 85% accuracy.
IS IT A VALUE MEASUREMENT?
FEELS LIKE IT'S PURE MAGIC BECAUSE IT'S GOOD SCIENCE
Your brain tells a story. Your smart watch is ready to listen. After more than 20 years of published, peer-reviewed research, we’re connecting the two. Now, using everyday wearable devices to capture activity within the body, we can measure the value people get out of experiences as they have them, anywhere, anytime.
Don't take our word for it. Download the full scientific and academic background.