BBC: Share of Mind

Through the project, it was also important to establish an understanding of what engagement means in terms of TV viewing and interacting with other devices.

We used a combination of neuroscience, eye tracking, filmed viewing sessions, ethnography and qualitative interviews to gain genuine insight into how viewers behave and not just how they perceive themselves to behave.

We gained some fascinating insights into how dual screening has changed viewers’ relationships with certain genres – sometimes enhancing the experience and sometimes giving them permission to watch programmes they might have considered less “worthy” before. On top of this, we established what can be defined as engagement with content compared to simple attention or awareness.