Berlin Gesture Center in cooperation with German Sport University Cologne
Gesture Coding with the NEUROGES-ELAN System
Workshop I: March 24–26, 2010
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Introduction
In the workshop series, we will present a coding system combined with an annotation tool for the analysis of gestural behaviour.
The NEUROpsychological GESture coding system consists of three modules which progress from gesture kinetics to gesture function. Grounded on empirical neuropsychological and psychological studies, the theoretical assumption behind NEUROGES is that its main kinetic and functional movement categories are differentially associated with specific cognitive, emotional, and interactive functions.
ELAN is a free multimodal annotation tool for digital audio and video media. It supports multi-levelled transcription and complies with standards such as XML (Extensible Markup Language) and Unicode. ELAN allows the gesture categories to be stored in vocabularies that are reusable by means of template files.
The combination of the NEUROGES coding system and the annotation tool ELAN results in an effective tool for empirical research on gestural behaviour.
Summary of the workshop program
The workshop series consists of two workshops.
In workshop I, an introduction to ELAN and to the NEUROGES modules I and II is given. Module I deals with coding gestures based on their kinetic features. In module II, the relation between the two hands is evaluated. The theoretical and empirical background of the module I and II categories is explained and the coding of gestures with the two modules is trained. The ELAN part of the workshop includes working with media (video and audio) files, creating and managing tiers and tier types, creating annotations, working with template files, creating and applying controlled vocabularies, using ELAN's search functions, exporting simple statistics and calculating inter-rater agreement.
In workshop II, the NEUROGES module III is introduced. Here, the function of gestures is evaluated and gestures are further classified as types. The theoretical and empirical background of the module III categories is explained, and participants train coding gestures with module III.
In addition, an introduction to empirical research with NEUROGES-ELAN is given and studies using the NEUROGES-ELAN system are presented. The participants are encouraged to present their own research ideas or studies, for which we will offer supervision.
A course reader and an interactive training DVD are provided for each participant. Participants are recommended to train coding with NEUROGES-ELAN prior to the workshop
by using the interactive DVD.
Referees / Scientific Organisation
Hedda Lausberg
Professor of Neurology, Psychosomatic Medicine, and Psychiatry; dance therapist (BVT); habilitation in neurology at the Charité – University Hospital Berlin; co-founder of 
Berlin Gesture Center; has received research grants from the German Research Association, the Max Planck Society, and the Volkswagen-Stiftung.
Research focuses are: development of movement analysis tools for clinical and research purposes; relation between movement behavior and mental disease. A major research project examined the movement behavior of patients with eating disorders.
As a neuroscientist, her recent studies investigate the neuropsychology of movement behavior, specifically the relation between movement and cognitive and emotional processes.
Han Slöetjes
Software developer at the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics in Nijmegen (The Netherlands). He is a Sun certified Java programmer who joined the Technical Group at the MPI in 2003. There he is mainly occupied with the further development of the multimedia annotation tool ELAN and is currently the main responsible person for maintaining, extending and teaching this tool.
Janka Bryjová
Student of Psychology at the Humboldt University Berlin. She has been working as a student assistant at the department of Psychosomatic Medicine in Dresden and Jena since 2006 and has lectured on Neuropsychological Gesture Coding.
Uta Sassenberg
Researcher at the German Sport University Cologne and the Free University of Berlin. She is a cognitive psychologist working on gesture production. Since 2007, she has been using the NEUROGES-ELAN system in empirical studies.
Information and Contact
Flyer
Gesture Coding with the NEUROGES-ELAN System 
Information
h.lausberg@dshs-koeln.de
Location
German Sport University Cologne
Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6
50933 Köln
Institutsgebäude II, Senatssaal
Public transportation by
Tram: Linie 1, Haltestelle Junkersdorf
Number of participants
max. 12
Fee
both workshops 250 €
reduced fee for students 150 €
Dates
Workshop I: March 24–26, 2010 9:30 am - 3:30 pm
Workshop II: May 26–28, 2010 9:30 am - 3:30 pm
Deadline for registration
January 31, 2010
For registration, please contact Ms. Klabunde
E-mail: c.klabunde@dshs-koeln.de
Phone: ++49(0)221-4982 4710
(Wed. + Thu. 9:00 am – 2:00 pm)