The Electronically Activated Recorder (EAR)
| The EAR constitutes the heart of my research program. It is a new tool for
sampling behavioral data in naturalistic settings.
James Pennebaker and I developed the method at the University
of Texas at Austin at the end of the last century. Since then it has
undergone a series of technical metamorphoses and is now available in a
completely revised third generation version.
The rapid progress in micro technology has made the EAR change its appearance a number of times (check out the EAR family tree), yet the basic methodological ingredients have remained the same: A micro recording device (first a tape recorder, then a digital voice recorder, now a Pocket PC) is programmed to periodically record brief snippets of ambient sounds. Participants wear the EAR (on a belt or in a purse) while going about their normal lives. In its default sampling strategy, the EAR yields about 70 samples of a person's acoustic social environment per person per day (i.e., about 35 minutes of ambient sounds). The power of the EAR lies in collecting authentic real-life observation data. The vividness of the captured ambient sounds is impressive. In preserving a high degree of naturalism and authenticity at the level of the raw data, the EAR can almost be considered an ethnographic method. Due to its sampling however, it allows for nomothetic as well as idiographic analyses. With its systematic recording pattern, the EAR provides a representative acoustic log of a person's day as it naturally unfolds. Due to its fine meshed sampling (~ 5 data points per hour), it can reliably capture even low-frequency behaviors such as arguments, self-talk, or laughter. Because the EAR operates unobtrusively and imperceptibly, measurement induced intrusions are minimal. From a conceptual perspective, the strength of the EAR lies in its ability to provide researchers with an observer's point of view on the participants' spontaneous behaviors. Whereas traditional experience sampling techniques that prompt participants several times a day to report on their momentary activities document many aspects of daily life reliably and accurately, the EAR captures daily life from the perspective (the ear) of an unobtrusive bystander. In not relying on the self as informant, the EAR bypasses potential limitations and biases in participants' information processing making the method particularly suited for capturing aspects of social life that normally go unnoticed (e.g., subtle interaction preferences or linguistic styles). An other important advantage of the method comes with the fact that it is an archival method. The EAR produces rich permanent records of people's daily lives that are readily available for other researchers and questions that go beyond the investigator's original interest. It is conceivable and desirable that other researchers within and outside of psychology become interested in analyzing the EAR records using their -- maybe very different -- interpretative lenses. In fact, other research labs have already contacted us and requested EAR data to test to what extent their theories account for aspects of people's naturally occurring social lives. Click here for the EAR family tree (first, second, and third generation of EAR systems). Click here for some "Action Shots" with the PocketEAR Click here for some "Action Shots" with the former Digital EAR. Click here for some EAR sound bites. Click here for purchasing information on the EAR. Original EAR Publication:
Further EAR Publications: Holleran, S. E., Mehl, M. R., & Levitt, S. (2009). Eavesdropping on social life: The accuracy of stranger ratings of daily behavior from thin slices of natural conversations. Journal of Research in Personality, 43, 660-672. [pdf]
Ramirez-Esparza, N., Mehl, M. R., Alvarez Bermudez, J., & Pennebaker, J. W. (2009). Are Mexicans more or less sociable than Americans? Insights from a naturalistic observation study. Journal of Research in Personality, 43, 1-7. [pdf]
Hasler, B., Mehl, M. R., Bootzin, R., & Vazire, S. (2008). Preliminary evidence of diurnal rhythms in everyday behaviors associated with positive affect. Journal of Research in Personality, 42, 1537-1546. [pdf]
Vazire, S., & Mehl, M. R. (2008). Knowing me, knowing you: The relative accuracy and unique predictive validity of self- and other ratings of daily behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95, 1202-1216. [pdf]
Mehl, M. R. (2007). Eavesdropping on health: A naturalistic observation approach for social-health research. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 1, 359-380. [pdf] Mehl, M. R., & Holleran, S. E. (2007). An empirical analysis of the obtrusiveness of and participants' compliance with the Electronically Activated Recorder (EAR). European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 23, 248-257.[pdf] Mehl, M. R., Vazire, S., Ramirez-Esparza, N., Slatcher, R. B., & Pennebaker, J. W. (2007). Are women really more talkative than men? Science, 317, 82. [link] Mehl, M. R. (2006). The lay assessment of sub-clinical depression in daily life. Psychological Assessment, 18, 340-345. [pdf]
Mehl, M. R., Gosling, S.
D., & Pennebaker, J. W. (2006). Personality in its natural habitat:
Manifestations and implicit folk theories of personality in daily life.
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 90,
862-877.
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