Capturing the Stream of Behavior: A Computer-Joystick Method for Coding Interpersonal Behavior Continuously Over Time

The present article advances a joystick-based methodology for recording and studying time-dependent patterns as continuous phenomena. It is particularly useful for capturing moment-to-moment changes with regard to a state space defined by two orthogonal axes, as in studies involving the interpersonal circumplex or the mood circumplex. A joystick monitoring program (free, down-loadable, executable software available at www.wlu.ca/science/psadler) is used. While watching a recorded interaction displayed on the computer screen, an observer moves the joystick to indicate a target person’s moment-to-moment behavior, and the X–Y coordinates are written frequently (e.g., twice per second) to a data file. The authors describe the software and the nature of the data obtained. The authors also suggest possible applications, such as studying subtle patterns of inter-personal behavior during interactions and studying individual differences in the perception of moment-to-moment variations in a target person’s affect. Keywords momentary assessment, continuous assessment, continuous dynamics, real-time processing, com-puter software In psychology, many processes unfold over time, yielding variables with important time-dependent patterns. For example, if we observe two people interacting, we see ebb and flow over time in the behaviors of both partners. The present article advances a new methodology for recording and study-ing these time-dependent patterns as reasonably continuous phenomena