Data Releases

JAR x Mediaprobe Data Release 

EXPLORING GALVANIC SKIN RESPONSE TO MEASURE EMOTIONAL AROUSAL 

Click here to register for a webinar on Friday, September 13th at 11am ET with Mediaprobe and JAR to learn more about their data release and the process of applying for access. 

Advertisers care about the extent to which their content drives reactions in viewers. Mediaprobe is a leading market research firm that uses a handheld galvanic skin response (GSR) sensor to measure physiological responses to advertising. This metric captures the extent to which consumers are engaged and impacted by the content they are viewing. Mediaprobe’s sensor provides results that are comparable to a research-grade polygraph and provides objective monitoring of emotions to media at scale.

Mediaprobe maintains a consumer panel that is recruited through a mobile app that also collects their second-by-second dial activity and pre/post survey responses. Audio Content Recognition (ACR) technology is used to detect content that is being viewed and enables data synchronization between media content and physiological signals. Mediaprobe’s sensor and app make it possible to conduct research studies with minimal setup time, participant training, and intrusiveness. The ecologically valid data is obtained in individuals’ own home environments.

Mediaprobe is partnering with the Journal of Advertising Research to make Mediaprobe's GSR data from its consumer panel available to JAR academic researchers, free of charge.

The historical database that Mediaprobe is making available for researchers includes GSR data on more than 10,000+ television ads from over 200 monitoring sessions. The sessions span content related to:

  • sports events (approximately 50% of the sessions)
    • soccer (World Cup 2022, European Champions League, domestic league competitions) 
    • basketball
    • NFL
    • rugby
  • unscripted content (e.g., news, reality show, music competition shows)
  • scripted content (tv shows: crime, drama, comedy)

This historical dataset Mediaprobe includes:

  • For each ad: 
    • Phasic data (derived from the electrodermal activity), available:
      • average panel response, second-by-second for the entire recording session (including the time before, during, and after each ad)
      • average panel response, averaged for the duration of each individual ad
    • Declarative data (like vs. dislike dial activity data):
      • average panel response, second-by-second for the entire recording session (including the time before, during, and after each ad)
      • average panel response, averaged for the duration of each individual ad
    • Audio recordings of each of the commercial ads
  • Session metadata:
    • session_id
    • country
    • channel/network
    • format
    • genre
    • show/program
    • participant demographics (gender, average age, percent 18-34, 35-64, and 65+)

Mediaprobe’s consumer panel includes 2,300 panelists who are: 

  • 61% female
  • Age distribution:
    • 18-34: 31%
    • 35-54: 56%
    • 55+: 13%
  • Located in three countries: USA + UK + Portugal

Interested academic researchers are encouraged to apply for access to the data by submitting their research ideas using this form.Applications will be reviewed by Mediaprobe and JAR based on each idea’s potential contribution. Each author team’s expertise with the proposed topic and relevant experience related to their methodology (e.g., handling large data) will also be considered. JAR and Mediaprobe are both looking for actionable research findings. As a result, there is preference for research ideas that have implications for the advertising and marketing community in addition to advancing theory. Applications are welcome on an ongoing basis up until October 14, 2024. 

Successful applicants must agree to sign a nondisclosure agreement (NDA) with Mediaprobe governing use of the data before access can be provided. This agreement will not preclude academic publications using the data, although successful applicants must submit any resulting papers for consideration first to the Journal of Advertising Research. Papers that are unsuccessful at JAR can be submitted to other outlets. Successful applicants are also requested to prepare a slide deck for Mediaprobe summarizing their findings. 

This data release and call for ideas is only available to academic researchers with no commercial interest in this area. Individuals or companies interested in use of Mediaprobe’s data or platform for commercial reasons should contact Mediaprobe’s sales team for more information using this form.