Emotion-Oriented Systems

Chapter 8

The Role of Emotions in Human−Machine Interaction ¹

8.1. Introduction

The rise of new technologies has placed computer systems at the heart of our daily lives. These new advances increasingly seek to take on roles normally carried out by humans, such as those of the tutor, advisor or animator. Indeed, research has shown that users tend to interact with these virtual agents in the same way as they would with humans [REE 96]. As such, one of the aims in this field of research is to provide machines with social intelligence to the extent that they can interact with humans naturally and easily.

The considerable amount of research into emotions and their link to the brain and social behavior has led to the creation of the term emotional intelligence, as proposed by Salovey and Mayer [SAL 00]. Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to perceive and express emotions, to understand and reason with emotions as well as regulating them within ourselves and others. This intelligence allows an individual to better integrate into society and to achieve his or her aims in his or her professional and personal life more quickly [GOL 97]. Researchers are currently interested in integrating some form of emotional intelligence into computer systems. As Minsky has highlighted [MIN 86], “the question is not whether intelligent machines can have any emotions, but whether machines can be intelligent without any emotions”. It is as a result of this that artificial intelligence has developed ...