An Evaluation of Shape Changes for Conveying Emotions

In this paper, we explore how shape changing interfaces might be used to communicate emotions. We present two studies, one that investigates which shapes users might create with a 2D flexible surface, and one that studies the efficacy of the resulting shapes in conveying a set of basic emotions. Results suggest that shape parameters are correlated to the positive or negative character of an emotion, while parameters related to movement are correlated with arousal level. In several cases, symbolic shape expressions based on clear visual metaphors were used. Results from our second experiment suggest participants were able to recognize emotions given a shape with a good accuracy within 28% of the dimensions of the Circumplex Model. We conclude that shape and shape changes of a 2D flexible surface indeed appear able to convey emotions in a way that is worthy of future exploration.

[1]  Nikolaus F. Troje,et al.  Paper windows: interaction techniques for digital paper , 2005, CHI.

[2]  Youngwoo Park,et al.  The roles of touch during phone conversations: long-distance couples' use of POKE in their homes , 2013, CHI.

[3]  Clayton Shepard,et al.  A longitudinal study of emoticon use in text messaging from smartphones , 2012, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[4]  Roel Vertegaal,et al.  FlexView: an evaluation of depth navigation on deformable mobile devices , 2013, TEI '13.

[5]  Karon E. MacLean,et al.  It's alive!: exploring the design space of a gesturing phone , 2013, Graphics Interface.

[6]  Fabian Hemmert,et al.  Dynamic knobs: shape change as a means of interaction on a mobile phone , 2008, CHI Extended Abstracts.

[7]  F. Strack,et al.  Inhibiting and facilitating conditions of the human smile: a nonobtrusive test of the facial feedback hypothesis. , 1988, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[8]  J. Mazziotta,et al.  Grasping the Intentions of Others with One's Own Mirror Neuron System , 2005, PLoS biology.

[9]  Majken Kirkegaard Rasmussen,et al.  Shape-changing interfaces: a review of the design space and open research questions , 2012, CHI.

[10]  J. Cacioppo,et al.  Rudimentary determinants of attitudes. II: Arm flexion and extension have differential effects on attitudes. , 1993, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[11]  Meredith Ringel Morris,et al.  User-defined gestures for surface computing , 2009, CHI.

[12]  Markus Löchtefeld,et al.  Morphees: toward high "shape resolution" in self-actuated flexible mobile devices , 2013, CHI.

[13]  James L. McClelland,et al.  Phenomenology of perception. , 1978, Science.

[14]  Majken Kirkegaard Rasmussen,et al.  Exploring the design space of shape-changing objects: imagined physics , 2013, DPPI.

[15]  Roel Vertegaal,et al.  Organic user interfaces: designing computers in any way, shape, or form , 2007, CACM.

[16]  A. F. Rovers,et al.  HIM: a framework for haptic instant messaging , 2004, CHI EA '04.

[17]  Ivan Poupyrev,et al.  Gummi: a bendable computer , 2004, CHI '04.

[18]  J. Fleiss.  Measuring nominal scale agreement among many raters. , 1971 .

[19]  Jeremy N. Bailenson,et al.  Virtual Interpersonal Touch: Expressing and Recognizing Emotions Through Haptic Devices , 2007, Hum. Comput. Interact..

[20]  Jun Rekimoto,et al.  Lumen: interactive visual and shape display for calm computing , 2004, SIGGRAPH '04.

[21]  F. Thomas,et al.  Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life , 1981 .

[22]  Youngwoo Park,et al.  Wrigglo: shape-changing peripheral for interpersonal mobile communication , 2014, CHI.

[23]  Moshe Bar,et al.  Emotional Valence Modulates the Preference for Curved Objects , 2011, Perception.

[24]  Wijnand A. IJsselsteijn,et al.  Investigating response similarities between real and mediated social touch: a first test , 2007, CHI Extended Abstracts.

[25]  Fabian Hemmert,et al.  Shape-changing mobiles: tapering in two-dimensional deformational displays in mobile phones , 2010, CHI Extended Abstracts.

[26]  F. Heider,et al.  An experimental study of apparent behavior , 1944 .

[27]  Fabian Hemmert,et al.  Shape-changing mobiles: tapering in one-dimensional deformational displays in mobile phones , 2010, TEI '10.

[28]  Marina Pavlova,et al.  Perceived Dynamics of Static Images Enables Emotional Attribution , 2005, Perception.

[29]  Maurice Merleau-Ponty.  Phenomenology of Perception , 1964 .

[30]  D. Norman.  Emotional design : why we love (or hate) everyday things , 2004 .

[31]  Paul Strohmeier,et al.  Mediated Touch: Exploring Embodied Design for Remote Presence , 2014 .

[32]  F. Thomas,et al.  The illusion of life : Disney animation , 1981 .

[33]  A. Ortony,et al.  Basic emotions: can conflicting criteria converge? , 1992, Psychological review.

[34]  Tovi Grossman,et al.  An interface for creating and manipulating curves using a high degree-of-freedom curve input device , 2003, CHI '03.

[35]  Hiroshi Ishii,et al.  Surflex: a programmable surface for the design of tangible interfaces , 2008, CHI Extended Abstracts.

[36]  DAANTJE DERKS,et al.  Emoticons in Computer-Mediated Communication: Social Motives and Social Context , 2008, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[37]  F. Strack,et al.  Proprioceptive Determinants of Emotional and Nonemotional Feelings , 1993 .

[38]  Majken Kirkegaard Rasmussen,et al.  "It's alive, it's magic, it's in love with you": opportunities, challenges and open questions for actuated interfaces , 2013, OZCHI.

[39]  Roel Vertegaal,et al.  PaperPhone: understanding the use of bend gestures in mobile devices with flexible electronic paper displays , 2011, CHI.

[40]  M. Bar,et al.  Visual elements of subjective preference modulate amygdala activation , 2007, Neuropsychologia.

[41]  Harm van Essen,et al.  Design and evaluation of Hapticons for enriched Instant Messaging , 2004 .

[42]  Maurice . Merleau-Ponty,et al.  Phenomenology of perception / by M. Merleau-Ponty ; translated from the French by Colin Smith. , 1966 .

[43]  Pattie Maes,et al.  Flexpad: highly flexible bending interactions for projected handheld displays , 2013, CHI.

[44]  Sophie Jörg,et al.  Investigating the role of body shape on the perception of emotion , 2009, TAP.

[45]  Roel Vertegaal,et al.  PaperTab: tablets as thin and flexible as paper , 2013, CHI Extended Abstracts.

[46]  Wendy E. Mackay,et al.  CHI '13 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems , 2013, CHI 2013.

[47]  A. F. Rovers,et al.  Guidelines for haptic interpersonal communication applications: an exploration of foot interaction styles , 2006, Virtual Reality.

[48]  P. Ekman,et al.  Unmasking the Face: A Guide to Recognizing Emotions From Facial Expressions , 1975 .

[49]  Eric Paulos.  Connexus: a communal interface , 2003, DUX '03.

[50]  A. Ortony,et al.  What's basic about basic emotions? , 1990, Psychological review.

[51]  David Kim,et al.  FlexSense: a transparent self-sensing deformable surface , 2014, UIST.

[52]  Scott Brave,et al.  inTouch: a medium for haptic interpersonal communication , 1997, CHI Extended Abstracts.

[53]  Roel Vertegaal,et al.  MorePhone: a study of actuated shape deformations for flexible thin-film smartphone notifications , 2013, CHI.

[54]  P. Ekman,et al.  Unmasking the face : a guide to recognizing emotions from facial clues , 1975 .

[55]  G. Lakoff,et al.  Metaphors We Live by , 1982 .

[56]  Sriram Subramanian,et al.  Is my phone alive?: a large-scale study of shape change in handheld devices using videos , 2014, CHI.

[57]  Hiroshi Ishii,et al.  inFORM: dynamic physical affordances and constraints through shape and object actuation , 2013, UIST.

[58]  Taylor Carman,et al.  The Body in Husserl and Merleau-Ponty , 1999 .

[59]  P. Lang.  International affective picture system (IAPS) : affective ratings of pictures and instruction manual , 2005 .

[60]  Andreas Christmann,et al.  Support vector machines , 2008, Data Mining and Knowledge Discovery Handbook.

[61]  J. Russell.  A circumplex model of affect. , 1980 .