Abstract
Pupil response reflects sympathetic activity and recent research has begun to study pupil response as a stress indicator. It is thought pupil response may be used as an indicator of stress and emotion. This study investigated whether pupil size reflects liking and interest which are Kansei activities. Fifteen adult subjects with normal vision were tested. The subjects' pupil responses were measured while looking at 32 images in random order. The images were digital color photos projected on a computer monitor depicting 16 models. Each model was shown with two expressions: 8 images of happy faces and 8 of neutral faces, and 8 images of angry faces and 8 of neutral faces. The subjects rated their liking and interest for each image using 5 point scales. This revealed that pupil size was significantly larger while viewing images rated as ‘dislike’ than while viewing images rated as ‘like’, over a period between 5 and 10 seconds after stimulus onset. Pupil size didn't reflect interest but liking. The results suggested that subjects physiologically relaxed while looking at images they like.
