Love him or hate him, you might actually learn something about engagement from Donald Trump: At least, if you work in market research. A Ph.D. student recently used Trump as fodder for measuring brain activity during certain stimulus. After hooking up participants to brain scan monitors, Sam Barnett of Northwestern University showed subjects clips of a recent Republican debate and measured brain activity throughout. The results? When Trump was speaking, there was a notable spike in brain activity.
Here’s the thing: This type of neurological testing can be extremely subjective. It proves that someone like Trump causes a spike in engagement, but doesn’t tell us why. In fact, an on-screen puppy might be just as engaging. Still, it’s a valuable exercise in measuring the way the brain responds to certain stimulus, and can actually help those in the eLearning industry plan better, more engaging content.
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