Establishing the validity and robustness of facial electromyography measures for political science

Opinion formation and information processing are affected by unconscious affective responses to stimuli—particularly in politics. Yet we still know relatively little about such affective responses and how to measure them. In this study, we focus on emotional valence and examine facial electromyograp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Politics and the life sciences 2024, Vol.43 (2), p.198-215
Main Authors: Schumacher, Gijs, Homan, Maaike D., Rebasso, Isabella, Fasching, Neil, Bakker, Bert N., Rooduijn, Matthijs
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Algorithms
Data processing
Design of experiments
Electromyography
Electromyography - standards
Emotional behavior
Emotional responses
Emotions
Experimental design
Facial Expression
Facial Muscles - physiology
Female
Humans
Information processing
Male
Measurement
Measures
Muscle contraction
Nervous system
Physiology
Political attitudes
Political science
Political scientists
Politics
Psychophysiological measures
Reproducibility of Results
Research Tool Report
Responses
Robustness
Stimuli
Unconsciousness
Validity
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Summary:Opinion formation and information processing are affected by unconscious affective responses to stimuli—particularly in politics. Yet we still know relatively little about such affective responses and how to measure them. In this study, we focus on emotional valence and examine facial electromyography (fEMG) measures. We demonstrate the validity of these measures, discuss ways to make measurement and analysis more robust, and consider validity trade-offs in experimental design. In doing so, we hope to support scholars in designing studies that will advance scholarship on political attitudes and behavior by incorporating unconscious affective responses to political stimuli—responses that have too often been neglected by political scientists.
ISSN:0730-9384
1471-5457
1471-5457
DOI:10.1017/pls.2023.26