Looking Towards Emotion Expression: An Analysis of Eye Contact in Serious Illness Conversations
Conference Year
January 2022
Abstract
In serious illness conversations (SICs) with dialysis patients, emotion expression was a relatively uncommon event. We aimed to understand the features that predict emotion expression. Conversations were recorded via Zoom and data from the ten seconds prior to emotion expression were analyzed. Five emotions were observed: sadness, frustration, loneliness, gratitude, and nervousness. In eight of eleven (73%) instances, patients discontinued eye contact and/or glanced at the camera within ten seconds prior to emotion expression. Eye contact was re-established when the patient expressed emotion. Knowledge of this pattern may better prepare clinicians and allow them to facilitate more meaningful SICs.
Primary Faculty Mentor Name
Katharine Cheung
Status
Undergraduate
Student College
College of Arts and Sciences
Program/Major
Biology
Primary Research Category
Health Sciences
Looking Towards Emotion Expression: An Analysis of Eye Contact in Serious Illness Conversations
In serious illness conversations (SICs) with dialysis patients, emotion expression was a relatively uncommon event. We aimed to understand the features that predict emotion expression. Conversations were recorded via Zoom and data from the ten seconds prior to emotion expression were analyzed. Five emotions were observed: sadness, frustration, loneliness, gratitude, and nervousness. In eight of eleven (73%) instances, patients discontinued eye contact and/or glanced at the camera within ten seconds prior to emotion expression. Eye contact was re-established when the patient expressed emotion. Knowledge of this pattern may better prepare clinicians and allow them to facilitate more meaningful SICs.