What Is behind In-Stream Advertising on YouTube? A Remote Neuromarketing Study employing Eye-Tracking and Facial Coding techniques

Not all elements displayed in a YouTube in-stream video ad are attributable to the ad itself. Some of those are automatically introduced by the platform, such as the countdown timer and the time progress bar. In recent years, some authors started exploring the effects associated with the presence of such non-ad items, providing valuable findings. However, objective evaluation of viewers' visual attention is lacking in this context as well as emotional investigation. In addition, previous research showed how the manipulation of seemingly negligible details can yield dramatically different outcomes in the context of in-stream advertising. To extend knowledge, the authors explored the effects of the non-ad items' presence by employing eye-tracking and facial coding techniques in combination with self-reports in a between-subjects experimental design focusing on the YouTube 15-s, mid-roll, non-skippable in-stream ad format. Results showed that the ad format currently employed by YouTube performs worse than its equivalent without the non-ad items on all the investigated measures and than its equivalent in which the non-ad items' presence was experimentally reduced on facial coding disgust, self-reported disgust, ad irritation, and ad attitude. Managerial insights and challenges concerning the future of in-stream advertising and neuromarketing are highlighted.

Time-Dependent Analysis of Human Neurophysiological Activities during an Ecological Olfactory Experience

It has been demonstrated that odors could affect humans at the psychophysiological level. Significant research has been done on odor perception and physiological mechanisms; however, this research was mainly performed in highly controlled conditions in order to highlight the perceptive phenomena and the correlated physiological responses in the time frame of milliseconds. The present study explored how human physiological activity evolves in response to different odor conditions during an ecological olfactory experience on a broader time scale (from 1 to 90 s). Two odors, vanilla and menthol, together with a control condition (blank) were employed as stimuli. Electroencephalographic (EEG) activity in four frequency bands of interest, theta, alpha, low beta, and high beta, and the electrodermal activity (EDA) of the skin conductance level and response (SCL and SCR) were investigated at five time points taken during: (i) the first ten seconds of exposure (short-term analysis) and (ii) throughout the entire exposure to each odor (90 s, long-term analysis). The results revealed significant interactions between the odor conditions and the time periods in the short-term analysis for the overall frontal activity in the theta (p = 0.03), alpha (p = 0.005), and low beta (p = 0.0067) bands, the frontal midline activity in the alpha (p = 0.015) and low beta (p = 0.02) bands, and the SCR component (p = 0.024). For the long-term effects, instead, only one EEG parameter, frontal alpha asymmetry, was significantly sensitive to the considered dimensions (p = 0.037). In conclusion, the present research determined the physiological response to different odor conditions, also demonstrating the sensitivity of the employed parameters in characterizing the dynamic of such response during the time. As an exploratory study, this work points out the relevance of considering the effects of continuous exposure instead of short stimulation when evaluating the human olfactory experience, providing insights for future studies in the field.

Neurophysiological Evaluation of Students' Experience during Remote and Face-to-Face Lessons: A Case Study at Driving School

Nowadays, fostered by technological progress and contextual circumstances such as the economic crisis and pandemic restrictions, remote education is experiencing growing deployment. However, this growth has generated widespread doubts about the actual effectiveness of remote/online learning compared to face-to-face education. The present study was aimed at comparing face-to-face and remote education through a multimodal neurophysiological approach. It involved forty students at a driving school, in a real classroom, experiencing both modalities. Wearable devices to measure brain, ocular, heart and sweating activities were employed in order to analyse the students' neurophysiological signals to obtain insights into the cognitive dimension. In particular, four parameters were considered: the Eye Blink Rate, the Heart Rate and its Variability and the Skin Conductance Level. In addition, the students filled out a questionnaire at the end to obtain an explicit measure of their learning performance. Data analysis showed higher cognitive activity, in terms of attention and mental engagement, in the in-presence setting compared to the remote modality. On the other hand, students in the remote class felt more stressed, particularly during the first part of the lesson. The analysis of questionnaires demonstrated worse performance for the remote group, thus suggesting a common "disengaging" behaviour when attending remote courses, thus undermining their effectiveness. In conclusion, neuroscientific tools could help to obtain insights into mental concerns, often "blind", such as decreasing attention and increasing stress, as well as their dynamics during the lesson itself, thus allowing the definition of proper countermeasures to emerging issues when introducing new practices into daily life.

Real-time Pilot Crew's Mental Workload and Arousal Assessment During Simulated Flights for Training Evaluation: a Case Study

Training assessment is usually done by evaluating information derived from instructor's supervision related to the pilot's operational performance and behavior. However, this approach lacks objective measures, especially regarding the pilots' mental states while accomplishing the flight training tasks. The study therefore aimed at developing and testing a method for gathering and analyzing in real-time pilots' brain activity and skin conductance to improve the training evaluation. In this regard, Novice pilots' neurophysiological signals were acquired throughout multi-crew training sessions. The results demonstrated how the methodology proposed was able to endow real-time pilots' mental workload and arousal assessment for i) better evaluating training progress and operational behavior during the training session, and ii) for objectively comparing different training sessions.

Neuroscientific Methods for Exploring User Perceptions While Dealing With Mobile Advertising: A Novel and Integrated Approach

Display and native ads represent two of the most widely used digital advertising formats employed by advertisers that aim to grab the attention of online users. In recent years, the native format has become very popular because it relies on deceptive features that make harder the recognition of its advertising nature, reducing avoiding behaviors such as the banner blindness phenomena, traditionally associated to display advertising, and so increasing its advertising effectiveness. The present study, based on a forefront research protocol specifically designed for the advertising research on smartphone devices, aims to investigate through neurophysiological and self-reported measures, the perception of display and native ads placed within article webpages, and to assess the efficacy of an integrated approach. Eye-tracking results showed higher visual attention and longer viewing time associated with native advertisements in comparison to traditional display advertisements, confirming and extending evidence provided by previous research. Despite a significantly higher rate of self-reported advertising intent was detected for articles containing display ads when compared to articles containing native ads, no differences have been found while performing the same comparison for the neurophysiological measures of emotional involvement and approaching motivation of for the self-reported measures of pleasantness and annoyance. Such findings along with the employment of an innovative research protocol, contribute to providing further cues to the current debate related to the effectiveness of two of the most widely used digital advertising formats.

The Sample Size Matters: To What Extent the Participant Reduction Affects the Outcomes of a Neuroscientific Research. A Case-Study in Neuromarketing Field

The sample size is a crucial concern in scientific research and even more in behavioural neurosciences, where besides the best practice it is not always possible to reach large experimental samples. In this study we investigated how the outcomes of research change in response to sample size reduction. Three indices computed during a task involving the observations of four videos were considered in the analysis, two related to the brain electroencephalographic (EEG) activity and one to autonomic physiological measures, i.e., heart rate and skin conductance. The modifications of these indices were investigated considering five subgroups of sample size (32, 28, 24, 20, 16), each subgroup consisting of 630 different combinations made by bootstrapping n (n = sample size) out of 36 subjects, with respect to the total population (i.e., 36 subjects). The correlation analysis, the mean squared error (MSE), and the standard deviation (STD) of the indexes were studied at the participant reduction and three factors of influence were considered in the analysis: the type of index, the task, and its duration (time length). The findings showed a significant decrease of the correlation associated to the participant reduction as well as a significant increase of MSE and STD (p < 0.05). A threshold of subjects for which the outcomes remained significant and comparable was pointed out. The effects were to some extents sensitive to all the investigated variables, but the main effect was due to the task length. Therefore, the minimum threshold of subjects for which the outcomes were comparable increased at the reduction of the spot duration.

Taste Responses to Chocolate Pudding with Different Sucrose Concentrations through Physiological and Explicit Self-Reported Measures

The past few decades have seen significant methodological and theoretical change within sensory science, including in food sciences. The physiological reaction to the Autonomous Nervous System (ANS) provides insightful information in interpreting consumers’ sensory and affective reactions. In this regard, we investigated how explicit responses of liking and perceived intensity of sensory features (sweet, bitter, and astringency) and implicit objective physiological responses of Heart Rate (HR) and Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) are modulated when varying the sweetness (sucrose concentration with 38; 83; 119; 233 g/kg) level in a cocoa-based product (dark chocolate pudding) and their relationship. The demographic effects on responses were also investigated. Results showed the effects of the sucrose concentration levels on liking and perceived intensity of all the sensory characteristics and on HR responses, which highlighted a significant effect of the sucrose concentration level. As regards the relationship between variables, a significant positive effect was found for the sucrose concentration level 3, where an increase in HR leads to an increase in liking; for the perceived bitterness, a significant positive effect of HR for the sucrose concentration level 1; and for the perceived astringent, a significant positive effect of HR for the sucrose concentration level 2. While we found no significant main effect of gender on our dependent variables, the results highlight a significant main effect of age, increasing the adult population responses. The present research helps to understand better the relationship between explicit and implicit sensory study variables with foods. Furthermore, it has managerial applications for chocolate product developers. The level of sweetness that might be optimal to satisfy at the explicit level (liking) and the implicit level (HR or emotional valence) is identified.

Forefront Users' Experience Evaluation by Employing Together Virtual Reality and Electroencephalography: A Case Study on Cognitive Effects of Scents

Scents have the ability to affect peoples' mental states and task performance with to different extents. It has been widely demonstrated that the lemon scent, included in most all-purpose cleaners, elicits stimulation and activation, while the lavender scent elicits relaxation and sedative effects. The present study aimed at investigating and fostering a novel approach to evaluate users' experience with respect to scents' effects through the joint employment of Virtual Reality and users' neurophysiological monitoring, in particular Electroencephalography. In particular, this study, involving 42 participants, aimed to compare the effects of lemon and lavender scents on the deployment of cognitive resources during a daily life experience consisting in a train journey carried out in virtual reality. Our findings showed a significant higher request of cognitive resources during the processing of an informative message for subjects exposed to the lavender scent with respect to the lemon exposure. No differences were found between lemon and lavender conditions on the self-reported items of pleasantness and involvement; as this study demonstrated, the employment of the lavender scent preserves the quality of the customer experience to the same extent as the more widely used lemon scent.

Consumer Behaviour through the Eyes of Neurophysiological Measures: State-of-the-Art and Future Trends

The new technological advances achieved during the last decade allowed the scientific community to investigate and employ neurophysiological measures not only for research purposes but also for the study of human behaviour in real and daily life situations. The aim of this review is to understand how and whether neuroscientific technologies can be effectively employed to better understand the human behaviour in real decision-making contexts. To do so, firstly, we will describe the historical development of neuromarketing and its main applications in assessing the sensory perceptions of some marketing and advertising stimuli. Then, we will describe the main neuroscientific tools available for such kind of investigations (e.g., measuring the cerebral electrical or hemodynamic activity, the eye movements, and the psychometric responses). Also, this review will present different brain measurement techniques, along with their pros and cons, and the main cerebral indexes linked to the specific mental states of interest (used in most of the neuromarketing research). Such indexes have been supported by adequate validations from the scientific community and are largely employed in neuromarketing research. This review will also discuss a series of papers that present different neuromarketing applications, such us in-store choices and retail, services, pricing, brand perception, web usability, neuropolitics, evaluation of the food and wine taste, and aesthetic perception of artworks. Furthermore, this work will face the ethical issues arisen on the use of these tools for the evaluation of the human behaviour during decision-making tasks. In conclusion, the main challenges that neuromarketing is going to face, as well as future directions and possible scenarios that could be derived by the use of neuroscience in the marketing field, will be identified and discussed.

Neurophysiological Measures of the Perception of Antismoking Public Service Announcements Among Young Population

Tobacco constitutes a global emergency with totally preventable millions of deaths per year and smoking-related illnesses. Public service announcements (PSAs) are the main tool against smoking and by now their efficacy is still assessed through questionnaires and metrics, only months after their circulation. The present study focused on the young population, because at higher risk of developing tobacco addiction, investigating the reaction to the vision of Effective, Ineffective and Awarded antismoking PSAs through: electroencephalography (EEG), autonomic activity variation (Galvanic skin response—GSR- and Heart Rate—HR-) and Eye-Tracking (ET). The employed indices were: the EEG frontal alpha band asymmetry and the frontal theta; the Emotional Index (EI), deriving from the GSR and HR signals matching; the ET Visual Attention (VA) index, based on the ratio between the total time spent fixating an area of interest (AOI) and its area. Smokers expressed higher frontal alpha asymmetry values in comparison to non-smokers. Concerning frontal theta, Awarded PSAs reported the highest values in comparison to both Effective and Ineffective PSAs. EI results highlighted that lowest values were expressed by Heavy Smokers (HS), and Effective PSAs obtained the highest EI values. Finally, concerning the Effective PSAs, regression analysis highlighted a correlation between the number of cigarettes smoked by participants (independent variable) and frontal alpha asymmetry, frontal theta and EI values. ET results suggested that for the Ineffective PSAs the main focus were texts, while for the Effective and Awarded PSAs were the visual elements. Results support the use of methods aimed at assessing the physiological reaction for the evaluation of PSAs images, in particular when considering the smoking habits of target populations.

EEG-based Approach-Withdrawal index for the pleasantness evaluation during taste experience in realistic settings

The taste is a vital sense in humans, because of its active role in regulating nutrition or avoiding harmful substances. Several studies showed the important role of the brain Pre-Frontal Cortex in decoding information coming from the gustatory system. It is also widely known, in neuroscientific literature, that the asymmetry of Pre-Frontal Cortex Activity is closely linked to the feeling of pleasantness experienced by the subject during sensorial stimulation. In this regard, from the electroencephalographic (EEG) signal it is possible to estimate the Approach/Withdrawal (AW) index, which has been largely investigated and validated in scientific literature, regarding visual, acoustic and olfactory stimuli.

The first impression is what matters: a neuroaesthetic study of the cerebral perception and appreciation of paintings by Titian

In this paper we measured the neuroelectrical and the eye-movements activities in a group of 27 healthy subjects during their visit of a fine arts gallery in which a series of masterpieces of the Italian painter Tiziano Vecellio (also known as Titian, 1488-1576) were shown. The pictures chosen for the visit were 10 portraits and 10 of religious subjects. Each picture was observed for a minute. A mobile EEG device with an eye-tracker was used for this experiment. Evaluation of the appreciation of the pictures was performed by using the neuroelectrical approach-withdrawal index (AW). High value of AW means high appreciation of the picture. The number of eye fixations performed by the subjects during the observation of the pictures was also analyzed. Results showed that in the examined group the AW index was significant higher during the observation of portraits than during the observation of the religious subjects (as resulted from an ANOVA performed on AW index, with a p<;0,007). Interestingly, the average AW index estimated in the first 20 seconds of the observation of the pictures remains highly correlated with the AW index evaluated for the second part of the data (from 20 s to one minute) for all the 20 pictures examined (r = 0,82, p<;0,0001). In addition, the number of eye fixations performed by the subjects in the first 5 or 10 seconds of observation of the pictures that were most appreciated are significantly higher than the number of eye fixations performed on pictures that subjects did not like (p<;0,048 and p<;0,0018, respectively). Such difference vanishes if the entire period of observation of the pictures of one minute is used (p = 0,54). Taken together, such results seem to suggest that the neuroelectrical correlates of the perception of "good" or "bad" pictures are rapidly formed in our brain, within the first 10-20 seconds from the exposition to the picture.

A Neuroelectrical Brain Imaging Study on the Perception of Figurative Paintings against Only their Color or Shape Contents

In this study, the cortical activity correlated with the perception and appreciation of different set of pictures was estimated by using neuroelectric brain activity and graph theory methodologies in a group of artistic educated persons. The pictures shown to the subjects consisted of original pictures of Titian's and a contemporary artist's paintings (Orig dataset) plus two sets of additional pictures. These additional datasets were obtained from the previous paintings by removing all but the colors or the shapes employed (Color and Style dataset, respectively). Results suggest that the verbal appreciation of Orig dataset when compared to Color and Style ones was mainly correlated to the neuroelectric indexes estimated during the first 10 s of observation of the pictures. Always in the first 10 s of observation: (1) Orig dataset induced more emotion and is perceived with more appreciation than the other two Color and Style datasets; (2) Style dataset is perceived with more attentional effort than the other investigated datasets. During the whole period of observation of 30 s: (1) emotion induced by Color and Style datasets increased across the time while that induced of the Orig dataset remain stable; (2) Color and Style dataset were perceived with more attentional effort than the Orig dataset. During the entire experience, there is evidence of a cortical flow of activity from the parietal and central areas toward the prefrontal and frontal areas during the observation of the images of all the datasets. This is coherent from the notion that active perception of the images with sustained cognitive attention in parietal and central areas caused the generation of the judgment about their aesthetic appreciation in frontal areas.

Telemedicine in dermatology: findings and experiences worldwide - a systematic literature review

Telemedicine has become an important element of health care in many countries and profited from the technological progress of the last two decades. Due to the visual character of the dermatological specialty, teledermatology in particular participated in that development and is becoming a major tool in dermatological consultation. The objective of this article was to identify the use of teledermatology across the world based on published original articles. A systematic literature search of the MEDLINE and Embase databases for eligible publications (predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria) and a cross-validation search were conducted. Search results were reviewed systematically. The search resulted in 204 publications meeting the inclusion criteria for analysis. The highest number of published studies on teledermatology was performed in the United States, followed by the United Kingdom, Spain, the Netherlands, Italy and Austria. The majority of dermatological indications for telemedical consultations were not specified or included various kinds of skin diseases, followed by skin cancer and wounds. Research questions predominantly focused on concordance, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness to determine the value. Teledermatology proved to be a reliable consultation tool in the majority of studies. If specified, telemedicine was used in daily dermatological routine for patient management purposes, to consult patients in peripheral locations, or for medical support in nursing homes or home care settings. The application of teledermatology worldwide is highest in North American and European countries, while countries with poor geographical distribution of physicians seem to be under-represented in teledermatological use, as concluded from publication output. Regarding indications, comparison with classic consultation and area of application, most studies were of general nature. For precise determination of the value, systematic studies would be needed. However, teledermatology is already accepted as a valid tool.

The great beauty: a neuroaesthetic study by neuroelectric imaging during the observation of the real Michelangelo's Moses sculpture

Recent studies have been showed as the perception of real or displayed masterpieces by ancient or modern painters generate stable neuroelectrical correlates in humans. In this study, we collected the neuroelectrical brain activity correlated with the observation of the real sculpture of Michelangelo's Moses within the church where it is actually installed in a group of healthy subjects. In addition to the cerebral activity also the heart rate (HR) and the galvanic skin response (GSR) were collected simultaneously, to assess the emotional engage of the investigated population. The Moses sculpture was observed by the group from three different point of views, each one revealing different details of the sculpture. In addition, in each location the light conditions related to the specific observation of the sculpture were explicitly changed. Results showed that cerebral activity of the subjects varied significantly across the three different views and for light condition against no light condition (p<;0.04). Furthermore, the emotional engage estimated on the whole population is higher for a point of observation in which the Mose's face is directed toward the eyes of the observers (p<;0.02). Finally, the cerebral appreciation of the investigated group was found maximum from a perspective in which all the details of the sculpture could be easily grab by the eyes. Results suggested how the perception of the sculpture depends critically by the point of view of the observers and how such point of view can produce separate emotional and cerebral responses.

An electroencephalographic Peak Density Function to detect memorization during the observation of TV commercials

Nowadays, there is a growing interest in measuring the impact of advertisements through the estimation of cerebral reactions. Several techniques and methods are used and discussed in the consumer neuroscience. In such a context, the present paper provides a novel method to estimate the level of memorization occurred in subjects during the observation of TV commercials. In particular, the present work introduce the Peak Density Function (PDF) as an electroencephalographic (EEG) time-varying variable which is correlated with the cerebral events of memorization of TV commercials. The analysis has been performed on the EEG activity recorded on twenty healthy subjects during the exposition to several advertisements. After the EEG recordings, an interview has been performed to obtain the information about the memorized scenes for all the video clips watched by the subjects. Such information has been put in correlation with the occurrence of transient peaks of EEG synchronization in the theta band, by computing the PDF. The present results show that the increase of PDF is positively correlated, scene by scene, (R=0.46, p<;0.01) with the spontaneous recall of subjects. This technology could be of help for marketers to overcome the drawbacks of the standard marketing tools (e.g., interviews, focus groups) when analyzing the impact of advertisements.

Computer-aided transrectal ultrasound: does prostate HistoScanning™ improve detection performance of prostate cancer in repeat biopsies?

Background

An imaging tool providing reliable prostate cancer (PCa) detection and localization is necessary to improve common diagnostic pathway with ultrasound targeted biopsies. To determine the performance of transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) augmented by prostate HistoScanning^TM analysis (PHS) we investigated the detection of prostate cancer (PCa) foci in repeat prostate biopsies (Bx).

Methods

97 men with a mean age of 66.2 (44 – 82) years underwent PHS augmented TRUS analysis prior to a repeat Bx. Three PHS positive foci were defined in accordance with 6 bilateral prostatic sectors. Targeted Bx (tBx) limited to PHS positive foci and a systematic 14-core backup Bx (sBx) were taken. Results were correlated to biopsy outcome. Sensitivity, specificity, predictive accuracy, negative predictive value (NPV) and positive predictive value (PPV) were calculated.

Results

PCa was found in 31 of 97 (32 %) patients. Detection rate in tBx was significantly higher (p < .001). Detection rate in tBx and sBx did not differ on patient level(p ≥ 0.7). PHS sensitivity, specificity, predictive accuracy, PPV and NPV were 45 %, 83 %, 80 %, 19 % and 95 %, respectively.

Conclusions

PHS augmented TRUS identifies abnormal prostatic tissue. Although sensitivity and PPV for PCa are low, PHS information facilitates Bx targeting to vulnerable foci and results in a higher cancer detection rate. PHS targeted Bx should be considered in patients at persistent risk of PCa.

Neuroelectric brain imaging during a real visit of a fine arts gallery: a neuroaesthetic study of XVII century Dutch painters

Neuroaesthetic is a scientific discipline founded more than a decade ago and it refers to the study of the neural bases of beauty perception in art. The aim of this paper is to investigate the neuroelectrical correlates of brain activity of the observation of real paintings showed in a national fine arts gallery (Scuderie del Quirinale) in Rome, Italy. In fact, the present study was designed to examine how motivational factors as indexed by EEG asymmetry over the prefrontal cortex (relative activity of the left and right hemispheres) could be related to the experience of viewing a series of figurative paintings. The fine arts gallery was visited by a group of 25 subjects during an exhibition of the XVII century Dutch painters. Results suggested a strict correlation of the estimated EEG asymmetry with the verbal pleasantness scores reported by the subjects (p<0,05) and an inverse correlation of the perceived pleasantness with the observed painting's surface dimensions (p<0,002).