Persuasive interactive non-verbal behaviour in embodied conversational agents

Realism for embodied conversational agents (ECAs) requires both visual and behavioural fidelity. One significant area of ECA behaviour, that has to date received little attention, is non-verbal behaviour. Non-verbal behaviour occurs continually in all human-human interactions, and has been shown to be highly important in those interactions. Previous research has demonstrated that people treat media (and therefore ECAs) as real people, and so non-verbal behaviour is also important in the development of ECAs. ECAs that use non-verbal behaviour when interacting with humans or other ECAs will be more realistic, more engaging, and have higher social influence. This thesis gives an in-depth view of non-verbal behaviour in humans followed by an exploration of the potential social influence of ECAs using a novel Wizard of Oz style approach of synthetic ECAs. It is shown that ECAs have the potential to have no less social influence (as measured using a direct measure of behaviour change) than real people and also that it is important that ECAs have visual feedback on their interactants for this social influence to maximised. Throughout this thesis there is a focus on empirical evaluation of ECAs, both as a validation tool and also to provide directions for future research and development. Present ECAs frequently incorporate some form of non-verbal behaviour, but this is quite limited and more importantly not connected strongly to the behaviour of a human interactant. This interactional aspect of non-verbal behaviour is important in human-human interactions and results from the study of the persuasive potential of ECAs support this fact mapping onto human-ECA interactions. The challenges in creating non-verbally interactive ECAs are introduced and by drawing corollaries with robotics control systems development behaviour-based architectures are presented as a solution towards these challenges, and implemented in a prototypical ECA. Evaluation of this ECA using the methodology used previously in this thesis demonstrates that an ECA with non-verbal behaviour that responds to its interactant is rated more positively than an ECA that does not, indicating that directly measurable social influences will be possible with further development

ELF at the European Commissione: a survey-based study on interpreters' perceptions

L\u2019inglese come lingua franca (ELF) si sta trasformando nel principale strumento di comunicazione interculturale al mondo. Il filone di ricerca ELF si \ue8 limitato finora all\u2019analisi di interazioni presenziali, discussioni in gruppo e incontri professionali, trascurando contesti pi\uf9 complessi e monologici come le conferenze (cfr. Reithofer 2010: 149). Tuttavia, ELF si fa strada anche in questo tipo di contesti, in cui le barriere linguistiche erano tradizionalmente superate ricorrendo all\u2019operato degli interpreti. ELF e l\u2019interpretazione si intrecciano in seno alle istituzioni europee, che rappresentano un campo di indagine particolarmente affascinante, alla luce della tensione che esiste tra politiche linguistiche consensualmente adottate ai pi\uf9 alti livelli e ispirate al multilinguismo e le scelte quotidiane volte a darvi applicazione, che possono inficiare il buon esito degli eventi comunicativi. La principale ipotesi di ricerca del presente studio \ue8 che ELF sia un fattore determinante, che esercita un\u2019influenza diretta sull\u2019applicazione del principio del multilinguismo all\u2019interno dell\u2019UE: sortisce un impatto sulla gestione del regime linguistico delle riunioni, sul servizio di interpretazione, sui diritti dei partecipanti alle riunioni e, non da ultimo, sul lavoro degli interpreti in cabina. Il presente studio esplora la percezione che gli interpreti hanno di ELF tramite un questionario (IPE, Interpreters\u2019 Perceptions of ELF). Gli interpreti sono testimoni diretti dell\u2019uso della lingua (Donovan 2009: 62): la loro opinione sull\u2019utilizzo di ELF \ue8 pertinente, dato che il loro lavoro \ue8 direttamente influenzato dall\u2019evoluzione delle politiche linguistiche in seno all\u2019UE. Il progetto di ricerca esplora le seguenti aree: l\u2019impatto di ELF sull\u2019efficacia comunicativa, sull\u2019attivit\ue0 degli interpreti e sul multilinguismo. Gli interpreti considerano ELF un fattore nocivo in termini di efficacia comunicativa. Ritengono che la maggior parte dei parlanti perda credibilit\ue0 e incisivit\ue0 esprimendosi in ELF e sospettano che ELF possa ostacolare una loro partecipazione attiva alle riunioni. I dati rivelano che sono ampiamente concordi nel ritenere che interpretare un oratore che si esprime in ELF sia particolarmente impegnativo, a causa di una fase di \u2018decodificazione\u2019 che va ad aggravare delle risorse cognitive gi\ue0 sovrastimolate. Gli elementi pi\uf9 problematici sono pronuncia, intonazione e sintassi che, a loro avviso, sono fortemente influenzati dalla L1 dei parlanti. Inoltre, esprimono un certo grado di frustrazione dinanzi ad ostacoli spesso insormontabili che rendono l\u2019interpretazione un compito ingrato. La posizione dei partecipanti alle riunioni \ue8 contemplata dallo studio tramite l\u2019analisi di dati derivati da un secondo questionario, il CSS (Customer Satisfaction Survey), un\u2019indagine sulla soddisfazione dei clienti organizzato dalla Direzione-Generale per l\u2019interpretazione della Commissione europea e rivolto ai partecipanti stessi. Il CSS e l\u2019IPE non sono direttamente raffrontabili, poich\ue9 si rivolgono a due diversi gruppi e sono stati redatti per scopi distinti. Pertanto, i dati del CSS sono stati analizzati solo nella misura in cui potevano confermare o confutare i risultati dell\u2019IPE.English as a lingua franca (ELF) is becoming one the most common means of intercultural communication around the world. The range of communicative events analysed by ELF research is mostly limited to face-to-face interactions, such as group discussions and business meetings, and does not generally include more complex and monologic settings, such as conferences (see Reithofer 2010: 149). Nevertheless, ELF is increasingly making way into these communication settings as well, where language barriers were traditionally overcome solely by means of interpretation services. Interpreting and ELF are naturally intertwined within the European Institutions, which represent a particularly stimulating scenario to investigate, as a tension is evident between language policies consensually agreed on a higher level and based on multilingualism and the daily choices on how to apply these policies, which affect the successful unfolding of communication events in various ways. The main research hypothesis of the present study is that ELF is a determining factor directly affecting how multilingualism is applied within the EU. More specifically, it affects language arrangements in meetings, the role of interpretation services, meeting participants\u2019 rights and not least the interpreters\u2019 work in the booth. The present study investigates EU interpreters\u2019 stance on the use of ELF by means of a questionnaire (the IPE, Interpreters\u2019 Perceptions of ELF). Interpreters are \u201cfirst-hand witnesses to actual language use\u201d (Donovan 2009: 62): their opinion on the use of ELF and effective communication is relevant, considering that they are in the front line when it comes to any evolution in the language policies adopted by the EU. Furthermore, it is their task and responsibility to make sure that communication between participants runs smoothly, to achieve the ultimate goal of ensuring that the European and national institutions can effectively exercise their right of democratic scrutiny. Three main areas are explored: the impact the use of ELF has on communicative effectiveness; the impact the use of ELF has on their interpreting; and the impact the use of ELF has on multilingualism and participation rights. Interpreters describe ELF as being a detrimental factor in terms of communicative effectiveness. They believe most speakers to lose credibility and incisiveness when resorting to ELF and question whether it might even represent a barrier to active participation. Interpreters also broadly agree that interpreting ELF speakers tends to be particularly demanding, due to an additional \u2018decoding\u2019 phase that ends up overloading already taxed processing capacities. The features they struggle most with are pronunciation/intonation and syntax, which, in their opinion, are heavily influenced by speakers\u2019 L1, thus conferring a higher degree of unpredictability to their speeches. Furthermore, interpreters admit to a certain degree of frustration, as they feel they are sometimes faced with unsurmountable obstacles, turning interpretation into a daunting task. Meeting participants are also accounted for, through the analysis of the data derived from a second questionnaire, the CSS (Customer Satisfaction Survey), the latest edition of a survey designed every two years by the European Commission Directorate-General for Interpretation and addressed to meeting participants, in order to assess their satisfaction with the services provided. The CSS and IPE are not directly comparable, as they address a different population and are drafted with different aims. Consequently, CSS data have only been analysed to the extent that they could confirm or refute IPE\u2019s results

The state and cultural policy in Ireland: the case of the Irish audiovisual sector

This thesis examines the relationship between the Irish state and the Irish audiovisual sector in an attempt to examine where the future of Irish cultural policy lies. Chapter one examines the nation as an "imagined community" and the importance of the media in that imagining. It establishes how important the media were to developing the cultural basis of the Irish nation-state. It indicates that with increasing internationalism and consumerism, the importance of the cultural field is becoming more unclear and how a redefinition of the public sphere is occurring in increasingly consumerist terms. Chapter two presents a history of broadcasting and film in Ireland, paying particular attention to concepts of nation-state, consumer-citizen and the changing definitions of public service. Chapter three extends this into the present day and shows how policy in the area of film and television is more and more being based on commercial rather than cultural criteria. Chapter four examines changes in the audiovisual sector at a European level and explores the effects of these developments on the Irish media and subsequently Irish culture. Based on interviews with Irish film makers, it presents their views on aspects of Irish culture and on the audiovisual sector itself. The final chapter presents a summary of findings and explores further, the need for more research and debate in the area of cultural policy in Ireland

Africa since 1935

This book is about the history of Africa since 193