Full Blog: Media Equation

Reference Information: Part 1
Title: Machines and Mindlessness: Social Responses to Computers
Authors: Clifford Nass, Youngme Moon
Presentation Venue: Journal of Social Issues; Volume 56, Issue 1, Spring 2000, pp. 81-103.

Summary: The authors of this paper discuss how people apply social rules to computers, and the interesting aspects of technology that have cropped up since it's introduction. For example, people seem to be overly-polite when working with computers. The researchers go in depth to discuss how people have come to anthropomorphize computers, and treat them essentially as humans.

Discussion: I found this article incredibly interesting. I've always enjoyed seeing how people anthropomorphize technology, so it was a fun read. The section of male vs. female voices was interesting as well. Everyone in my family has their own preference for what type of voice they like our GPS unit to speak in, so I've seen this first hand.

Reference Information: Part 2
Title: Computers are social actors
Authors: Clifford Nass, Jonathan Steuer, Ellen R. Tauber
Presentation Venue: CHI ’95: Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems: celebrating interdependence; April 24, 1995; Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Summary: Part Two continues the aspects introduced in the first paper. In particular, the researchers discuss five experiments in which they tested how people distinguish between their 'self' and 'other' while working with computers. The researchers concluded their paper discussion how they view computer-human relationships as a social experience.

Discussion: This article was slightly less interesting, but still a good read none the less. I'm not sure how much I agree with their social-experience conclusions, but they did have valid points.

Reference Information: Part 3
Title: Can computer personalities be human personalities?
Authors: Clifford Nass, Youngme Moon, B. J. Fogg, Byron Reeves, Chris Dryer
Presentation Venue: CHI ’95: Conference companion on Human factors in computing systems; 1995; Denver, Colorado, USA.

Summary: The final paper describes research into creating a personality for a computer. They attempt to find the right blend of personality traits so that a user will react well to it and have a pleasurable experience. The majority of the computer's personality traits were expressed through it's communication.

Discussion: I found it very interesting people do not universally favor a dominant or submissive system. Instead, they generally like the system that matches themselves. This somewhat makes sense, since people often view computers as extensions of themselves.