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Perception of Virtual Agents as Communicators in Virtual vs. Augmented Reality by a Male Sample

Published: 19 April 2023 Publication History

Abstract

Virtual agents are often employed in persuasive applications, and different studies in the literature have shown that the gender of the agent may have an impact on how users perceive the agent as a communicator. This paper adds a new variable to this line of research, considering the possible effects of presenting the agent in Virtual Reality (VR) vs. Augmented Reality (AR). We measured attentional allocation, perceived affective understanding, speaker credibility and speaker strength. While attentional allocation was the same in all conditions, an interesting pattern emerged for the other variables. The transition from VR to AR apparently changed the perception of some communicator aspects to the advantage of the female virtual agent. We also found associations between participants’ personality traits (in particular, extraversion) and perception of the agent. The paper describes and discusses these findings.

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cover image Guide Proceedings
Persuasive Technology: 18th International Conference, PERSUASIVE 2023, Eindhoven, The Netherlands, April 19–21, 2023, Proceedings
Apr 2023
434 pages
ISBN:978-3-031-30932-8
DOI:10.1007/978-3-031-30933-5

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Springer-Verlag

Berlin, Heidelberg

Publication History

Published: 19 April 2023

Author Tags

  1. Virtual Agent
  2. Communicator
  3. Virtual Reality
  4. Augmented Reality

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