Understanding people by tracking their word use (keynote)

The words people use in their conversations, emails, and diaries can tell us how they think, approach problems, connect with others, and their behaviors. Of particular interest are people's use of function words -- pronouns, articles, and other small and forgettable words. Processed in the brain differently from content words, function words reveal where people are paying attention and how they think about themselves and others. After summarizing dozens of studies on language and psychological state, the talk will explore how text analysis can help us get inside the heads of the people we study.