Avatar-based emotion representation with varying degrees of realism

Abstract

In the age of digitalization with its progressive visualization of a wide variety of content, avatars are becoming increasingly important. Consequently, virtual human representations are also being used in healthcare, for example in therapeutic applications. The use of technologies such as virtual reality or virtual characters like avatars can support people who find social interactions challenging. This is often the case for people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The aim of the presented study was to evaluate the suitability of different avatar types for the development of a future digital application for people with ASD. Based on the results of a previous study, two avatar types that differed in their degree of realism were analysed: a cartoonish, simple avatar and a stylized, moderately detailed avatar. First, it was investigated how participants set different basic emotions on these avatars and whether these settings are comparable between the different types of realism as well as with previously defined values for the basic emotions. Afterwards, a threshold test was used to determine at what point the emotions displayed by the avatars became recognizable and at what point they were rated as pronounced. Overall, ten men and ten women (M = 24.9 years old, SD = 3.64) participated in the study. The results show that the average values set by the participants correspond to the previously defined values for the basic emotions, with a relatively high degree of variation in some cases. Overall, the insights gained within this experiment provide a basis for future research on this topic.

Keywords: avatars, emotions, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), Human Factors

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1005824