Approach/withdrawal events and contact duration
Timestamped approach and withdrawal events, contact onset/offset, and cumulative contact duration for every dyad. Enables social preference and social avoidance quantification.
CSV
← Capabilities
Social Interaction
Quantify social dynamics between identified individuals
Automated tracking captures all pairwise interactions continuously — approach, contact, following, and avoidance scored without manual annotation.
Allpairwise
Interactions scored
Continuous
Scoring mode
Per-dyad
Analysis granularity
4animals
Maximum tracked
The problem
Manual social scoring captures only selected events
Human observers scoring social interactions typically record only pre-selected event types (e.g., attack, mount, sniff) and miss the continuous dynamics between events. Subjective judgment determines event onset and offset, inter-rater reliability is low for complex interactions, and the approach is too slow for large cohorts.
- Observers record only pre-selected event types — continuous social dynamics between events are lost
- Event onset and offset depend on subjective judgment, reducing reproducibility across scorers
- Scoring a 10-minute social interaction session manually requires 30-60 minutes per session
The solution
Automated continuous tracking of all pairwise interactions
ConductVision tracks each animal's identity and position continuously, computing all pairwise social metrics at every frame. Approach events, contact episodes, following behavior, and social avoidance are scored automatically for every dyad. Per-animal and per-dyad breakdowns are exported without manual annotation.
- All pairwise interactions scored continuously — not limited to pre-selected event types
- Approach, contact, following, and avoidance detected with deterministic criteria — no scorer judgment
- Per-dyad analysis enables examination of social hierarchies and individual social profiles
Endpoints
Social behavior dependent variables
Social preference index and following behavior
Social preference index (time near social vs non-social stimulus), social novelty index, following bouts (one animal locomoting toward another), and leader-follower dynamics.
CSV
Inter-animal distance time series
Frame-by-frame distance between every pair of animals. Continuous time series enables spectral analysis of social oscillations and proximity dynamics.
CSVJSON
Applications
Social behavior paradigms with automated scoring
Three-chamber sociability and social novelty
Automated scoring of sociability and social novelty preference phases. Social preference index, investigation time, and chamber transition count computed without observer input.
Measures
- Social preference index
- Investigation time
- Social novelty discrimination ratio
Social defeat stress paradigm
Track aggressor and subject throughout defeat and social interaction test sessions. Quantify avoidance, social approach latency, and time in interaction zone with the aggressor present.
Measures
- Social avoidance ratio
- Approach latency
- Interaction zone time
Pair bonding and maternal behavior
Score proximity, contact duration, and huddle time between pair-bonded or dam-pup dyads. Detect side-by-side contact, following, and mutual grooming events.
Measures
- Contact duration
- Huddle time
- Following bout frequency
Observer-demonstrator social learning
Track observer proximity to demonstrator during task performance. Quantify observation time, distance during demonstration, and subsequent behavioral change in the observer.
Measures
- Observation duration
- Proximity during demonstration
- Post-observation behavioral change
Compared to typical systems
How ConductVision differs
| Feature | ConductVision | Typical systems |
|---|---|---|
| Interaction scoring | Continuous — all pairwise events | Selected events only |
| Animals tracked | Up to 4 with persistent identity | 2 with manual identification |
| Event types detected | Approach, contact, following, avoidance | User-defined subset |
| Automation level | Fully automated — deterministic | Manual or semi-automated |
| Per-dyad analysis | Yes — all pairwise combinations | Aggregate only in most systems |
Related capabilities
Multi-Animal Tracking
Persistent markerless identity tracking for up to four animals simultaneously without physical markers or implants.
Zone and Spatial Analysis
Configurable spatial zones with automated dwell time, entry count, and heatmap analysis for any arena.
Behavior Classification
ML-powered frame-level behavioral classification with temporal smoothing and custom classifier training.
Score social behavior automatically
Upload a social interaction recording and see all pairwise dynamics extracted without manual annotation.
