Research Design Connection: Smart Buildings, Users and Communication

by Sally Augustin, Ph.D. | April 8th, 2019

How smart buildings should communicate with their users was investigated by Khashe, Gratch, Gratch and Becerik-Gerber. They determined that, “People connect better with a computer-generated avatar that represents building management…social banter between machine and people gets better results. The findings underscore how personal connections and social interactions key to human relations also foster cooperation between people and machines…subjects were exposed to an office setting using virtual reality, followed by a real office setting for a smaller group of participants. The researchers crafted pro-environmental messages for a virtual assistant…to ask questions, such as ‘If I open the blinds for you to have natural light, would you please dim or turn off the artificial lights?’…people responded better when Ellie, the virtual human, acted on behalf of the building manager, rather than when she performed as a personification of the building…The scientists noted similar results whether study participants operated in an actual office …