Arevalo Arboleda, Stephanie and Hartbrich, Jakob and Weidner, Florian and Fischedick, Söhnke Benedikt and Gerhardt, Christoph and Richter, Kay and Kunert, Christian and Vorhof, Bea and Gross, Horst-Michael and Broll, Wolfgang and Raake, Alexander (2025) Robot, Avatar, or Human : The Impact of Partner Representation and Task on the Communication Experience. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction - CSCW, 9 (7): CSCW472. pp. 1-27. ISSN 2573-0142
Full text not available from this repository.Abstract
Avatars and telepresence robots have long received attention for remote communication. However, the specific nature of their physicality, expressiveness, and mobility may affect their usefulness for different tasks. This work compares using an avatar (presented in augmented reality) and a telepresence robot to Face-to-Face (F2F) communication during different communication tasks: free conversation, negotiation, and referential communication with movement. We conducted a user study (split-plot design, N=54) with the type of representation of the conversational partner as the within variable and the communication task as the between variable. Our results show that the type of task, especially referential communication with movement, influenced the perceived attention to nonverbal cues and closeness. Generally, gestures and body movements received the least focus with telepresence robots. Gestures in avatars and F2F drew similar attention, which we attribute to the avatar's tracking fidelity. Gaze received less attention in both avatar- and robot-mediated communication compared to F2F, while facial expressions on the robot's screen heightened attention compared to avatars. These findings advance the fundamental understanding of mediated communication and support researchers and practitioners in shaping the design of communication applications beyond today's video calls.