Jerk-O-Meter Research

Pay attention. This is real: a device that measures how bored you are by a telephone conversation. A couple of guys at MIT are testing software that will analyze speech patterns and, when downloaded to your cell phone or Voice-over-IP, will rate your conversational partner on how closely he or she is listening to you.

For the paranoid, it’s one more electronic nail in the privacy coffin. An Atlanta telecoms analyst, Jeff Kagan, is quoted as saying, “It sounds pretty cool. But if somebody was using it against me, I’d say, ‘How dare they!’” (What’s that old line about paranoia?)

For marketers, researchers, and ad people, the Jerk-O-Meter offers another tool for creating and getting messages to people more effectively. Nevertheless, I’m reminded of those scenes in the Tom Cruise movie, “The Minority Report,” in which interactive billboards scan people’s eyeballs and then start sales-pitching them by name.

You can read the whole AP article if you just Google “Jerk-O-Meter” – that’s easy, it shows up on several sites, including Wired magazine’s. I’ll ask my research-engaged friends to review the article and send me feedback for posting. Meantime, don’t let your mind wander next time you’re on the phone with your insurance agent.