Tracking unconscious response to visual stimuli to better understand a pattern of human behavior on a Facebook page

Abstract

As one of the fastest growing social media networks, Facebook is used daily by 7.91 billion users. Despite its worldwide influence, the cognitive perception of this social network has not been fully understood or researched. The current study examines human behavior when viewing Facebook pages to provide marketers information on how to enhance content and increase attention on their Facebook pages. A neuroscience approach using an eye-tracking device was used to gain insight into the reasons users chose to follow the Croatian Academic Union of the Faculty of Economics (HAZEF). The results showed that followers spent, on average, less than 1.5 s viewing a Facebook post, while the emotional analysis of facial expressions revealed a higher prevalence of negative moods and emotions such as sadness when viewing the HAZEF page. Negative moods decreased when posts contained images of human faces. Possible reasons for these findings are discussed, and recommendations are made to optimize the Facebook page for optimal attention and awareness of postings.