Does computer-generated speech manifest personality? an experimental test of similarity-attraction

This study examines whether people would interpret and respond to paralinguistic personality cues in computergenerated speech in the same way as they do human speech. Participants used a book-buying website and heard five book reviews in a 2 (synthesized voice personality: extrovert vs. introvert) by 2 (participant personality: extrovert vs. introvert) balanced, between-subjects experiment. Participants accurately recognized personality cues in TTS and showed strong similarity-attraction effects. Although the content was the same for all participants, when the personality of the computer voice matched their own personality: 1) participants regarded the computer voice as more attractive, credible, and informative; 2) the book review was evaluated more positively; 3) the reviewer was more attractive and credible; and 4) participants were more likely to buy the book. Match of user voice characteristics with TTS had no effect, confirming the social nature of the interaction. We discuss im...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2000
• Where: CHI
• Authors: Clifford Nass, Kwan Min Lee
• Keywords: CHI 2000, Human Computer Interaction, Paralinguistic Personality Cues, Personality Cues, Voice Personality