Human-like Appearance Research Articles

Uncanny Valley Curve or Linear Relationship? The Different Influences of Robots’ Human-Likeness on Mind Perception and Visuospatial Perspective-Taking

High but imperfect human likeness (HL) of robot appearance may elicit negative emotional responses of people, which is called the Uncanny Valley (UV) effect. Meanwhile, robots’ human-like appearances also influence people’s mind perception and behaviors toward robots, but it is not clear whether the influences also follow the UV curve. Moreover, the relationship between mind perception and behavior remains an open question. This study recruited 256 participants and employed 72 real-world robots with different levels of human-like appearance. Participants’ spontaneous visuospatial perspective-taking, along with their subjective ratings of robots’ likability and mind perception were measured. The results revealed that with the HL score of robots increasing, likability and mind perception showed UV curves, but perspective-taking exhibited an increasingly linear line. At the same time, the relationship between perspective-taking and mind perception was weak. These empirical findings provided insights into theories related to people’s mind perceptions and behaviors toward robots.

Seeing Personhood in Machines: Conceptualizing Anthropomorphism of Social Robots

This study conceptualizes and develops a multi-dimensional Scale of Social Robot Anthropomorphism (SSRA). Through a rigorous scale development procedure that consists of a battery of qualitative (interviews and focus group) and quantitative approaches (online and field studies), four dimensions of social robot anthropomorphism are identified, namely, human-like appearance, social intelligence, emotional capacity, and self-understanding. The scale is found to be valid and reliable by testing its convergent, discriminant, and nomological validities, utilizing data collected from over 1,000 participants. The theoretical and managerial contributions are discussed, and future research recommendations are provided.

Balancing Human Likeness in Social Robots: Impact on Children’s Lexical Alignment and Self-disclosure for Trust Assessment

While there is evidence that human-like characteristics in robots could benefit child-robot interaction in many ways, open questions remain about the appropriate degree of human likeness that should be implemented in robots to avoid adverse effects on acceptance and trust. This study investigates how human likeness, appearance and behavior, influence children’s social and competency trust in a robot. We first designed two versions of the Furhat robot with visual and auditory human-like and machine-like cues validated in two online studies. Secondly, we created verbal behaviors where human likeness was manipulated as responsiveness regarding the robot’s lexical matching. Then, 52 children (7–10 years old) played a storytelling game in a between-subjects experimental design. Results show that the conditions did not affect subjective trust measures. However, objective measures showed that human likeness affects trust differently. While low human-like appearance enhanced social trust, high human-like behavior improved children’s acceptance of the robot’s task-related suggestions. This work provides empirical evidence on manipulating facial features and behavior to control human likeness in a robot with a highly human-like morphology. We discuss the implications and importance of balancing human likeness in robot design and its impacts on task performance, as it directly impacts trust-building with children.

Development and Validation of an AI Virtual Streamer Scale for Live-Streaming E-Commerce

In recent years, AI virtual streamers (i.e., digital characters with human-like appearances) have become a pervasive e-commerce phenomenon but remain almost unexplored in the literature on e-commerce marketing. The possible reasons for this deficiency are the vagueness of the AI virtual streamer concept and the lack of a measurement tool. Therefore, this study aimed to conceptualize AI virtual streamers and develop an AI virtual streamer characteristic scale through five stages based on social response theory. Following item generation, measurement refinement, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factory analysis and nomological validity, a third-dimensional (persona, anthropomorphism, and interactivity) scale with 10 items was established. Empirical results reveal sound measurement qualities in terms of reliability and validity, and demonstrate its unique position in respect to established marketing concepts. The developed scale has managerial implications for designing and applying virtual humans or avatars, such as virtual employees, virtual spokespersons, virtual idols, and virtual guided tours. This tool also enables future research on virtual live streaming, such as virtual destination live streaming, virtual education live streaming, or virtual live concerts.

Tech vs. Tradition: ChatGPT and Mindfulness in Enhancing Older Adults' Emotional Health.

To improve older adults' mental health, this study compared the effects of AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT 3.0, with traditional mindfulness therapies on loneliness and depression in older adults. Despite interest in AI as a complementary tool, empirical evidence on its impact remains limited. For an eight-week intervention, older adult participants from two nursing homes in Hangzhou were assigned to groups focused on mindfulness (group sessions) and chatting (one-on-one ChatGPT). Following the intervention, participants engaged in a researcher-led focus group discussion. After 8 weeks, tension had decreased significantly (p < 0.05) in the Mindfulness group of older adults, and there was no significant difference between the effects of ChatGPT and mindfulness on the emotional intervention of older adults. Findings indicated three themes, including (1) personal experience, reflecting older adults' use of AI technology and mindfulness; (2) attitudes and perspectives on the experiment's desirability and insufficiencies; and (3) needs and expectations for future AI and mindfulness developments, including usability and functional preferences. Similar to mindfulness practice, ChatGPT interactions helped older adults feel less depressed and might eventually reduce costs by replacing mindfulness. In the future, AI can be integrated with conventional techniques to improve interaction by giving AI a more human-like appearance.

Rise of Digital Influencer Marketing

Virtual influencer marketing is a global emerging phenomenon in social media research. Research on traditional influencer marketing and practices has been the locus of attention for years, but fairly scarce research deals with the rise and influence of virtual influencers, also known as artificial intelligence influencers (AIIs) or computer-generated influencers (CGIs). In this article, an explorative, qualitative single case analysis of the Japanese CGI influencer Imma is presented to identify how the CGI is visually constructed on Instagram in a marketing campaign. Two supplementary semiotic lenses are applied, i.e. a visual compositional analysis and a semiotic image analysis. The results indicate that the CGI influencer Imma is visually presented by and large with the same characteristics and attributes as found in similar studies of human influencers. Moreover, the findings indicate subtle yet essential differences in the visual framing of the CGI character to enhance a human-like appearance. Concludingly, this study has preliminary implications for research, practitioners, prospective marketers, and future innovation leaders in the virtual marketing industry, and it is proposed to consider reconceptualizing our understanding of virtual influencers and acknowledging the rise of Virtual Influencer Marketing as a field in its own right.

Prosocial Campaigns With Virtual Influencers: Stories, Messages, and Beyond

This research addresses the rising prominence of virtual influencers (VIs) by asking a crucial question: “How can we effectively use virtual influencers to not only reach audiences but also deeply resonate with them, particularly in promoting socially responsible behaviors?” We propose employing narrative messaging to enhance virtual influencers’ effectiveness in delivering prosocial messages. In a 2 (VI appearance: human-like vs. anime-like) × 2 (message style: narrative vs. non-narrative) between-subjects design, 320 Gen-Z and younger Millennials were exposed to simulated Instagram posts by a VI discussing cyberbullying. Results indicated that human-like virtual influencers led to higher supporting intent and message credibility, especially in the non-narrative condition. However, in the narrative message condition, the advantage of human-like appearance diminished. These findings highlight the significant role of VI appearance in prosocial message reception and the conditional influence of message style. Actionable insights for practitioners leveraging VIs in social marketing strategies are discussed.

Virtual human on social media: Text mining and sentiment analysis

Virtual humans are embodied agents with a human-like appearance. Despite the recent booming development that has sparked widespread academic interest, how people perceive these seemingly human but entirely fictional creations remains unclear. To explore the status, trends, emotional tendencies, and focus of attention of the Chinese public towards virtual humans, this paper utilizes text mining techniques to collect and analyze popular posts related to virtual humans on Chinese social media. The results indicate that public discussions primarily focus on the technological and industrial development of virtual humans, applications in the fields of virtual idols and virtual streamers, and the corporate investment and policy development of virtual humans. Despite positive emotions dominating, there is an increasing trend in negative emotions. Concerns are related to service failures, the uncanny valley effect, ethical crises, and technological unemployment. The research findings contribute to policymakers, industry stakeholders, and the public in understanding the general attitudes toward virtual human technology, enabling informed decision-making.

Umgang mit KI-Robotern: maschinelle Übersetzer, Textgeneratoren, Chatbots &amp; Co – Eine empirische Studie bei Erstsemester Studierenden

Artificial Intelligence (AI) increasingly influences people's lives by fostering enhanced interaction between humans and machines (Kim, 2022). AI robots are considered agents that undertake tasks traditionally performed by humans through AI programming. There are two categories of AI robots: those with human-like performance and those with human-like appearance for social interaction. Based on this concept, seven specific use cases were developed for this study. An online survey conducted among students (N = 636) in September 2022 (shortly before the release of ChatGPT) examined both the frequency of usage and the ethical evaluation of each of the seven use cases by students. Additionally, a risk and an opportunity index were formed to assess students' general perception of AI. The perceived risks outweigh the recognized opportunities. The frequency of students' usage of AI robot types is generally considered relatively low. The acceptance of ethical principles varies depending on the kind of AI robot, with students particularly valuing fairness for AI robots involved in (human-like) text generation and transparency for AI robots engaged in human-like social interactions.

Scenario-Based Approach to AI’s Agency to Perform Human-Specific Tasks

Abstract The development of service robots and chatbots has changed the way companies interact with their customers. Several automated tasks have been taken over by AI, such as communication with customers, processing of orders and also other automated tasks. To measure the impact AI will have on our society, we have analyzed AI’s agency by testing different scenarios of AI’s ability to perform human-specific tasks such as having own political opinions, religious beliefs and other situations which go beyond the simple execution of tasks. The results show that consumers perceive a low probability that AI has such thoughts. However, AI with stronger anthropomorphic characteristics is more likely to have agency to perform these types of tasks. According to our study, a human-like appearance enhances the perception that AI can have political views, religious beliefs and an own identity. Moreover, people consider that AI with anthropomorphic characteristics should be responsible for their mistakes and punished if they do something wrong. In spite of this, AI, independent of its anthropomorphic characteristics, is not believed to have the ability to solve mankind problems such as reducing pollution, stabilizing the world economy or to ensure world peace. Our research also shows that men are more inclined to attribute agency to AI compared to women, which perceive a lower AI agency.

Understanding User Preferences in Developing a Mental Healthcare AI Chatbot: A Conjoint Analysis Approach

The global population is experiencing a significant rise in cases of depressive disorders, which have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, having limited resources and fear of social stigma have discouraged individuals from seeking professional psychological counseling or visiting hospitals. In response to this issue, psychiatrists have attempted the use of chatbots as a therapeutic aid. Therefore, in this study, users’ choice data about the mental healthcare AI chatbot are collected through conjoint analysis, and the collected data is analyzed using the mixed logit method to derive users’ preferences for the mental healthcare AI chatbot. Findings highlight a consistent preference among users for certain factors in both psychological counseling chatbots and traditional psychological counseling. At first, the findings indicate that users place the highest priority on pricing and the ability to connect with a professional counselor. Furthermore, users prefer chatbots that have a more human-like appearance and characteristics. By incorporating these preferences, chatbot developers can create a more user-centric mental healthcare AI chatbot.

Perplexity Games: Maoism vs. Literature through the Lens of Cognitive Stylometry

The arrival of large language models (LLMs) has provoked an urgent search for stylistic markers that could differentiate machine text from human text, but while the human-like appearance of machine text has captivated public attention, the reverse phenomenon—human text becoming machine-like—has raised much less concern. This conceptual lag is surprising given the ample historical evidence of state-backed attempts to regulate human thought. The present article proposes a new comparative framework, Perplexity Games, to leverage the predictive power of LLMs and compare the statistical properties of Maospeak, a language style that emerged during the Mao Zedong’s era in China (1949-1976), with the style of canonical modern Chinese writers, such as Eileen Chang (1920-1995) and Mo Yan (1955-). The low perplexity of Maospeak, as computed across different GPT models, suggests that the impact of ideologies on language can be compared to likelihood-maximization text-generation techniques which reduce the scope of valid sequence continuations. These findings have cognitive implications: whereas engineered languages such as Maospeak hijack the predictive mechanisms of human cognition by narrowing the space of linguistic possibilities, literature resists such cognitive constraints by dispersing the probability mass over multiple, equally valid paths. Exposure to diverse language data counters the influences of ideologies on our linguistically mediated perceptions of the world and increases the perplexity of our imaginations.

The power of flattery: Enhancing prosocial behavior through virtual influencers

AbstractWhile prior work suggests the significant role virtual influencers (VIs) can play in addressing social and welfare issues, it remains unclear how they can increase social media users' engagement in prosocial behaviors. The current study examines the role of influencer flattery in driving the prosocial behavior of social media users. Specifically, the research investigates how flattery and humanlike appearance influence the perceived authenticity of VIs and the subsequent prosocial behavior of social media users (Studies 1 and 2). Furthermore, the research substantiates these effects by exploring how flattery and anthropomorphism via humanlike traits impact perceived authenticity and prosocial behavior when social media users witness the influencer praising others (Study 3). Beyond intention to donate (Study 1), the study also investigated its impact on related prosocial behaviors, such as click‐through behavior (Study 2) and the willingness to pay for fundraising merchandise (Study 3). The findings of this research offer concrete implications for nonprofit organizations by demonstrating the persuasive impact of flattery, perceived authenticity, and anthropomorphism in mobilizing public support, donations, and merchandise purchases for social causes.

Fake human but real influencer: the interplay of authenticity and humanlikeness in Virtual Influencer communication?

Recently, there has been a lot of interest in industry and academia in virtual influencers (VIs). This study aimed to augment the understanding of VI marketing by exploring the relationship between VI’s characteristics (i.e., their humanlikeness level and operator type), their social media post characteristics (i.e., emotional expression, use of pronouns, use of punctuation marks), and consumer engagement. The analysis of three popular VIs’ Instagram profiles and posts revealed that VIs with less humanlike appearances tend to exhibit stronger positive emotional expressions. Interestingly, the level of humanlikeness in appearance was not associated with VI's other post characteristics, suggesting other intrinsic factors (e.g., the VI’s character and virtual universe) may play a pivotal role. Whether a brand operates the VI or not made a statistically significant difference in the VI’s post characteristics. Assessment of user engagement metrics (i.e., number of likes and comments) showed that users prefer hyper-realistic VIs and VIs operated by non-brand agencies, underscoring the importance of perceived authenticity in the digital realm. The emotions expressed by VIs, along with their use of punctuation, were positively related to user engagement.

How service robots’ human-like appearance impacts consumer trust: a study across diverse cultures and service settings

PurposeThis study aims to compares the effects of different human-like appearances (low vs. medium vs. high) of service robots (SRs) on consumer trust in service robots (CTSR), examines the mediating role of perceived warmth (WA) and perceived competence (CO) and demonstrates the moderating role of culture and service setting.Design/methodology/approachThe research design includes three scenario-based experiments (Chinese hotel setting, American hotel setting, Chinese hospital setting).FindingsStudy 1 found SR’s human-like appearance can arouse perceived anthropomorphism (PA), which positively affects CTSR through parallel mediators (WA and CO). Study 2 revealed consumers from Chinese (vs. American) culture had higher CTSR. Study 3 showed consumers had higher WA and CO for SRs in the credence (vs. experience) service setting. The authors also had an exploratory analysis of the uncanny valley phenomenon.Practical implicationsThe findings have practical implications for promoting the diffusion of SRs in the hospitality industry. Managers can increase CTSR by augmenting the anthropomorphic design of SRs; however, they must consider the differences in this effect across all service recipients (consumers from different cultures) and service settings.Originality/valueThe authors introduce WA and CO as mediators between PA and CTSR and set the culture and service setting as moderators.

Can a virtual human increase mindfulness and reduce stress? A randomised trial

BackgroundStress is a significant issue amongst university students, yet limited psychological services are available. Mindfulness is effective for stress reduction and can be delivered digitally to expand access to student populations. However, digital interventions often suffer from low engagement and poor adherence. A virtual human may improve engagement and adherence through its humanlike appearance and behaviours. ObjectiveTo examine whether a virtual human could reduce stress in university students at least as much as a teletherapist, and more than a chatbot, using a mindfulness intervention. MethodsStressed university students (N = 158) were randomly allocated to the virtual human (N = 54), chatbot (N = 54), or teletherapist (N = 50). 36 participants received each condition. Participants completed one lab session and were asked to do online homework sessions at least twice weekly for four weeks. Changes in self-reported stress and mindfulness, physiological stress indices, homework completion, and perceptions of the agent were compared between groups. Thematic analysis was conducted on participants’ responses to open-ended questions about the interventions. ResultsThere were significant reductions in stress and increases in mindfulness across all groups. All groups had higher peripheral skin temperature post-intervention, and only the teletherapy group had higher electrodermal activity (reflecting elevated stress) post-intervention compared to baseline. There were no significant changes in heart rate. Homework adherence was significantly higher in the virtual human group, whereas homework satisfaction and engagement were lowest in the chatbot group. Thematic analysis found that people thought the robotic voice of the virtual human could be improved, the chatbot could be improved by adding audio, and that participants experienced feelings of judgement from the teletherapist. DiscussionOverall, results support use of virtual humans for delivering mindfulness interventions in stressed students. Virtual humans may have the advantage over teletherapy and chatbots of increasing adherence in student populations, but more work is needed to increase perceived empathy and replicate results in other populations.

How humanlike is enough?: Uncover the underlying mechanism of virtual influencer endorsement

Social media and computer-mediated communication technologies have given rise to the emergence of virtual influencers and created a new digital landscape for online interactions. Although an increasing number of virtual influencers - computer-generated agents are developing partnerships with organizations and brands to connect with social media users, there is a paucity of research exploring the mechanism underlying the endorsement of virtual influencers. With an online experiment (N = 320), this study investigated the effects of using virtual influencers in branding. Particularly, we examined how variations in humanlike appearances affect two-dimensional anthropomorphism and para-social interaction in the communication process. In general, results showed that respondents perceived higher levels of mindful anthropomorphism and stronger para-social interactions with virtual influencers that had a more humanlike appearance, leading to more favorable brand attitudes and higher purchase intentions. No significant difference in branding effects was found between a highly humanlike virtual influencer and a real human. Additionally, the branding effects were not different between using a moderately humanlike virtual influencer and a highly humanlike one or a real human endorser via mindless anthropomorphism. Findings provide both theoretical and practical insights into using virtual influencers in branding.

Development of a Virtual Human for Supporting Tobacco Cessation During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

People who consume tobacco are at greater risk of developing severe COVID-19. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic reduced the accessibility of tobacco cessation services as a result of necessary social restrictions. Innovations were urgently needed to support tobacco cessation during the pandemic. Virtual humans are artificially intelligent computer agents with a realistic, humanlike appearance. Virtual humans could be a scalable and engaging way to deliver tobacco cessation information and support. Florence, a virtual human health worker, was developed in collaboration with the World Health Organization to remotely support people toward tobacco cessation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Florence delivers evidence-based information, assists with making quit plans, and directs people to World Health Organization-recommended cessation services in their country. In this viewpoint, we describe the process of developing Florence. The development was influenced by a formative evaluation of data from 115 early users of Florence from 49 countries. In general, Florence was positively perceived; however, changes were requested to aspects of her design and content. In addition, areas for new content were identified (eg, for nonsmoker support persons). Virtual health workers could expand the reach of evidence-based tobacco cessation information and personalized support. However, as they are a new innovation in tobacco cessation, their efficacy, feasibility, and acceptability in this application needs to be evaluated, including in diverse populations.

Eye Contact Matters for Consumer Trust – Even with Robots

Abstract The integration of AI into consumer services is transforming the way people make decisions. AI is becoming more human-like, with chatbots, voice assistants and robots adopting human features and behavior. Consumers react differently to assistants with a human-like appearance than to advice from a web page, and the behavior of AI advisors influences consumer trust and decision-making. The results of an experiment comparing human advisors, robotic advisors with and without eye contact, and text-based services show that human advisors are trusted the most, but robotic advisors are preferred over text-based services. Human-like advisors increase trust and satisfaction. Extended human features like eye contact are essential for establishing trust and positive consumer responses. Companies should consider using humanoid advisors and incorporating eye contact to enhance customer experience. Consumers should be aware of the influence of human-like AI and stay informed about AI developments.

Mere copycat? The effects of human versus human-like virtual influencers on brand endorsement effectiveness: A moderated serial-mediation model

The emergence of virtual influencers, who possess realistic human-like appearances and intelligence, has provided new opportunities for brand endorsement strategy and gradually become an innovative trend. As the effectiveness of influencer endorsement is rooted in parasocial relationships, it remains unknown whether this effect can be extended to virtual influencers. With a focus on endorsement, the current study investigated the impact of human-like virtual influencers on parasocial relationships and their further outcomes. Two scenario-based experiments spanning two cultural contexts (Studies 1 and 2) provided sufficient evidence that users build weaker parasocial relationships with human-like virtual influencers due to the lower emotional engagement involved, which results in lower endorsement effectiveness in terms of brand interest and purchase intention. Moreover, a novel moderation role of influencer post modality (image vs. video) was found to attenuate the negative effect of human-like virtual influencers. The findings contribute to enhancing the understanding of users’ relationship building with virtual influencers, and offer suggestions for influencer endorsements and communication strategies for virtual influencers.