Why do people go to Disney World? Why do parents take their kids to meet Mickey? It’s simple. We want to feel joy. We want to create memories. We want to make our friends and family laugh.

Disney parks have been dubbed “The Happiest Place on Earth” and “The Most Magical Place on Earth,” so it’s no surprise that we see hundreds of smiling children and happy adults visit the parks each day. Recently, researchers have taken to social media to quantify those emotions on a larger scale. Are people really happy on vacation?

On September 9th, 2024, a study titled “Using geotagged facial expressions to visualize and characterize different demographic groups’ emotion in theme parks” was published in the Scientific Reports journal. The study examined geotagged facial expressions on social media to visualize people’s emotions in various theme park locations and then explain the variations and emotions within Shanghai Disney Resort, China.

The study began with 42,988 “microblogs,” or social media photos and posts, all geotagged within the Shanghai Disney Resort from January 2019 to December 2020. Researchers used a facial recognition algorithm to categorize people’s emotions. Ultimately, the results indicated that each demographic has unique characteristics and considerable variation. They explained that their findings can help those who design and manage tourism products.

The study used a facial expression recognition software called FaceReader to obtain demographic information and the emotion status of visitor’s facial expressions. The researchers’ algorithm classified facial expressions of Shanghai Disney visitors into seven emotions: happiness, sadness, disgust, anger, surprise, fear, and neutral. The analyzed demographic groups included teen males, teen females, adult males, adult females, older males, and older females.

The results of the study began by outlining the trends of groups’ emotions in Shanghai Disney’s lands. Researchers explained, for example, that teen females showed strong emotion during “adventure activities,” while teen males showed negative emotions and did not show much excitement in “scenic spots.” It was ultimately concluded that Disney’s Gardens of Imagination was designed to attract female tourists, with facial recognition data to back up the claim.

In general, the results were largely straightforward. Teen males seemed more interested in dining at Disneytown, while teen females were comparatively more interested in shopping. Both adult males and “older males” posted complaints about the high prices of the food and merchandise, with one adult male subject writing, “Why so expensive? Next time, I will bring my own hot rice.”

Ultimately, it became clear that no matter the age, location, or gender, there was something to stir everyone’s emotions (both positively and negatively) at Shanghai Disney Resort. Researchers believe their findings support the need for “optimized travel routes” for different demographics, indicating that every group’s travel plans should look a little different. Disney can even use this data to tailor its marketing to different age groups and demographics, given the way that teen males and females may respond to a thrilling new attraction.

In the meantime, we’re always on the lookout for the latest Disney news, so stay tuned for more.

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What do you think about these findings? Let us know in the comments!

The post “Next Time, I Will Bring My Own Hot Rice.” How Disney and 42,988 Social Media Posts Became the Source for a NEW Facial Recognition Study first appeared on the disney food blog.