The Integration of Quantitative Biometric Measures and Experimental Design Research

In design research, recently an increasing number of experiments have been conducted that successfully applied quantitative biometric measurement methods to investigate design-related research questions. These methods are heart rate variability (HRV), skin conductance response (SCR), electroencephalography (EEG), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) as well as remote and mobile eye tracking (ET). Within the scope of these experiments, a variety of different biometric measurement systems have been used, each able to record specific raw data and each using characteristic measures to detect and specify particular patterns of human behaviour. This chapter explores how these biometrical measurement systems work, what exactly they measure, and in which ways collected raw data can be analysed to obtain meaningful results. By using the example of selected design studies, the benefits as well as the limitation of the aforementioned biometric measurement methods are discussed and reflected in regard to their present and future role in experimental design research.

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