Facial emotional responses to visual representations of deprived experiences in ICE environments: an exploratory analog space mission case study

Isolated, confined, and extreme (ICE) environments, such as space analog habitats, expose individuals to prolonged sensory and social deprivation, posing risks to psychological well-being. This exploratory study examined whether visual representations of everyday experiences unavailable during isolation elicit measurable facial emotional responses in analog astronauts. Data were collected from eight participants during two 14-day missions at the LunAres Research Station.

Participants viewed short videos depicting deprived experiences (e.g., nature, social interaction, physical activity) at regular intervals. Facial emotional responses were recorded and analyzed using automated facial expression recognition (FaceReader), with a focus on emotional Valence. Results provided limited evidence of temporal variability in emotional Valence during stimulus viewing.

Valence was significantly higher at the midpoint measurement than at the preceding, lowest-Valence measurement; however, the full mixed-effects model did not significantly improve upon the null model, and the remaining temporal contrasts were non-significant. Valence during post-viewing commentary remained relatively stable and generally positive. Descriptive analyses suggested possible variation across stimulus categories, with more positive Valence observed for some scenes involving nature and social interaction; however, these differences were not tested inferentially.

Given the small sample, the findings should be considered preliminary and hypothesis-generating. This exploratory study provides initial support for the feasibility of using automated facial analysis during analog missions and identifies temporal and stimulus-related patterns for examination in larger studies. The organization of this study was made possible thanks to the support of the European Space Agency, the Polish Space Agency, and the Polish Ministry of Development and Technology.

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to all individuals involved in supporting the AstroMentalHealth project within these institutions. We also wish to express our gratitude to Leszek Orzechowski and Agata Mintus from the LunAres Research Station, who served as organizers of the analog space missions in Piła, Poland, as well as to Mateusz Mazur from Mazur Media, who prepared the video recordings used as visual stimuli in the present study. The results presented are part of the pilot study of the broader research project “AstroMentalHealth – Mental and behavioral health, work performance, and interaction with nature and technological environment during a space mission – psychological monitoring and intervention programs”.

The study was conducted in the context of IGNIS – The First Polish Mission to the International Space Station and was funded by the ESA SciSpacE Activities, Open Space Innovation Platform, Call for Polish activities to fly on ISS, OSIP ID: I-2023-06798. Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, 40126, Poland Agnieszka Skorupa, Mateusz Paliga, Ari Nowacki & Marcin Josiński Institute of Political Science, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, 40007, Poland The authors declare no competing interests. Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.