Looking the Part: The Effect of Attire and Setting on Perceptions of a Virtual Health Counselor

The visual design of virtual agents and scenes presents developers with a plethora of choices. We conducted two studies in which we manipulated the design of a virtual health counselor agent's attire and its virtual environment. Our studies demonstrate that virtual agents dressed to fit their health care role are perceived to be more professional, trustworthy, reassuring, and more persuasive regarding medical decisions, compared to agents whose appearance is not role-appropriate. Furthermore, the effect of an agent's attire is greater than that of its virtual environment. The results of this research can help create visual guidelines for the development of virtual agents in tasks that rely on user trust.

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