Effects of Deformed Embodied Agent during Collaborative Interaction Tasks: Investigation on Subjective Feelings and Emotion

Abstract

Designing embodied agents that are empathic and positive towards humans is important in Human Agent Interaction (HAI) and design factors need to be instigated based on experimental investigation. Agent design specificity, in which less specific animated designs are better than realistic designs, is one of the key factors that facilitate positive emotions during interactions. Focusing on this point, this study investigated the effects of a deformed embodied agent during a collaborative interaction task with the objective of understanding how subjective interpersonal states and emotional states change when deformed embodied agents are used instead of non-deformed agents. This was accomplished by developing an interactive communication task with the embodied agent and collecting subjective and emotional state data during the task. The results obtained indicate that deformed agents evoke impressions of closeness and produce higher arousal states.