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Eberly College of Arts and Sciences Department of Communication Studies
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Communication Studies Research Lab

Explore the rooms that provide our faculty and graduate students with a secure and robust environment to collect data for their research.
Established in Fall 2012, the Department of Communication Studies Research Lab features an observation and data room that provide our faculty and graduate students a secure and robust environment to collect data for their research. The space is designed to accommodate research on media uses and effects, interpersonal and family communication, health communication, and relational dynamics.  

Group Lab
(2328 Field Hall)

A conference room accommodating up to 12 people, the Group Lab is equipped with a PTZ-camera and ceiling drop-microphone for observational research. Additionally, the Group Lab is outfitted with a High Definition 75-inch TV with surround sound and laptop interface, along with a teleconferencing suite utilizing multiple noise-cancelling microphones and speaker tracking technology. Perfect for focus group facilitation, the Group Lab can also be used to conduct observational research on small group dynamics.
Group lab room: conference table with a tv on the wall at the end showing a conference call.

Interpersonal Lab
(2322 Field Hall)

Furnished as a living room with a couch, chair, reading light and tables. Equipped with two cameras (one fixed, one PTZ) and integrated ceiling microphone connected to the lab network for real-time observation and recording from the Observation Lab. Studies using this space have ranged from observational studies of couple conflict to experiments on emotion and information management in friendships and dating relationships.

Interpersonal Lab

Media Lab
(2324 Field Hall)

Includes a 75-inch High Definition TV with surround sound system, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4 with Virtual Reality setup. The Media Lab is equipped with a PTZ camera, integrated ceiling microphone, and screen capture device, which provides a live feed of the TV display to the Observation Lab. Screen captures synchronize with lab audio & video equipment, letting researchers see (and record) what participants see and experience in real-time.

Media Lab

Observation Lab
(2320 Field Hall)

Data control center with server and two workstations, equipped with software to collect private audio and video feeds from all other spaces. Workstations provide researchers access to live audio and video feeds in all lab spaces. Includes secure storage for Observer XT (behavioral & event coding), FaceReader 7 (automated emotion coding and heart rate measurement), laptops, tablets, and physiology equipment.

Observation Lab