Psychologists have previously studied how anthropomorphic agents can satisfy human needs for intimacy.
What are virtual agents?
Virtual agents play a more important rolein modern world. A virtual agent (also known as a virtual representative or chatbot) is a software application that uses natural language processing and scripted responses to support people online. As agents become more complex, they are used for more than just that.
Where can they be found now?
People's romantic lives are important socialan area in which virtual agents are increasingly involved. The human need to love and be loved is universal, psychologists say. And for most of human history, that presupposed a different person. But today a basic human need can be satisfied by a virtual agent.
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Often seen in romantic video gamesvirtual characters that are becoming increasingly interactive and responsive. Such games are becoming increasingly popular. They provide millions of people with the opportunity to maintain, develop and enjoy romantic relationships with a virtual agent. Despite the rapid growth in popularity of these games, researchers have not yet systematically studied such virtual novels.
Why did scientists want to investigate the issue?
As virtual agents becomeincreasingly complex and interactive, people may increasingly view them as human persons. If this is the case, then the relationship with them can feel real and authentic, causing people to have positive emotions and a desire to continue contact.
To better understand and study the concept.anthropomorphism, the research team conducted laboratory studies using romantic video games. The goal is to understand how romantic anthropomorphism predicts relationship authenticity, desire for relationships, a person's general mood, as well as interpersonal behavior outside of online life.
What did they find out?
The first laboratory study showed thatthe romantic anthropomorph predicted a person’s desire for a real relationship with him. In addition, it had a positive effect on the subject as a whole. All thanks to the feeling of authenticity of the relationship built with the virtual agent.
In the second study, scientists reproducedthe results of the first, using a larger sample and a different romantic video game, and then conducted a third experiment. The results of the latter replicated those of the first two studies. However, the latter showed that a person's behavior in a video game did not help predict his actions in the real world when interacting with a subject over time.
What's the bottom line?
Ultimately, all three studies showed one thing: people often feel that their connection and relationship with a virtual agent was genuine.
And that's what's important.It is not anthropomorphism per se (there is no reliable direct link between anthropomorphism and outcomes), but rather the way it fuels the authenticity of the relationship creates a sense of authenticity. This, in turn, is important for creating a strong connection with agents. It seems people have found a new way to satisfy the need for intimacy in the modern world.
What's next?
“Most research on romantic relationshipswere focused on the connections between people, and most of the previous anthropomorphism experiments were focused on the Platonic aspect. Our experiment develops a new field that bridges the gap between anthropomorphism and relationship science,” said Mayu Koike, assistant professor at the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Hiroshima University and co-author of the paper in an interview with the study.
Looking ahead, scientists are confident that within the framework of futureresearch, psychologists will be able to systematically vary the degree to which romantic interest is driven by anthropomorphism. This will help to understand how personality traits or other individual differences affect virtual relationships.
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