THESIS
2017
xi, 90 pages : illustrations ; 30 cm
Abstract
Virtual assistants have reportedly given inconsistent and impersonal responses to affect-sensitive
questions from users. Some cases even noted sexual harassments directed at the agents. These
scenarios beckon a need for emotional intelligence (EI) in virtual agents (VA) and to identify
design factors that may influence people’s perception of EI in VA and strategies to handle difficult
situations. In this work, we investigate human perception of EI in VAs by conducting a three-phase
study with a total of 199 participants from a local university. The VAs expressed emotions, had
increased intelligence, and were personality driven for Phases I to III respectively. The results show
that simple emotion expression in VA may not be enough for a VA to be seen as truly EI. Increasing
inte...[
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Virtual assistants have reportedly given inconsistent and impersonal responses to affect-sensitive
questions from users. Some cases even noted sexual harassments directed at the agents. These
scenarios beckon a need for emotional intelligence (EI) in virtual agents (VA) and to identify
design factors that may influence people’s perception of EI in VA and strategies to handle difficult
situations. In this work, we investigate human perception of EI in VAs by conducting a three-phase
study with a total of 199 participants from a local university. The VAs expressed emotions, had
increased intelligence, and were personality driven for Phases I to III respectively. The results show
that simple emotion expression in VA may not be enough for a VA to be seen as truly EI. Increasing
intelligence of a VA may encourage challenges and VAs with distinct personality, especially the
embodiment of submissive traits, is perceived as significantly EI, even in face of user challenges.
The research insights from this work can be applied as VA design and conversational UI to
improve user experience in a market-facing virtual psychologist. The technology, developed by
the Human Language Technology Center, and market opportunities will be discuss in the business
section. The mental healthcare market has a potential customer base of 615 million people globally
[125], many of whom are confronted with the burden of inadequate professional services, financial
costs, and social stigma. A virtual psychologist can alleviate each of these painpoints by offering
an accessible online service, affordable subscription packages, and adequate privacy. Despite the
benefits, virtual psychologist as a solution require continual HCI research and professional advice
from an accredited psychologist generate customer confidence. Currently under development, the
product will be rolled out in 2018 with an Indiegogo campaign that seeks market validation.
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