Evaluation of a self-report system for assessing mood using facial expressions

Abstract

Effective and frequent sampling of mood through self-reports could enable a better understanding of the interplay between mood and events influencing it. To accomplish this, we built a mobile application featuring a sadness-happiness visual analogue scale and a facial expression-based scale. The goal is to evaluate, whether a facial expression based scale could adequately capture mood. The method and mobile application were evaluated with 11 participants. They rated the mood of characters presented in a series of vignettes, using both scales. Participants also completed a user experience survey rating the two assessment methods and the mobile interface. Findings reveal a Pearson’s correlation coefficient of 0.97 between the two assessment scales and a stronger preference for the face scale. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of our findings for mood self-assessment and an outline future research.