A pupil response system for inducing empathy by laugh response in voice communication

Abstract

We have already developed an embodied communication system with the pupil response and demonstrated that the pupil response plays an important role in realizing smooth human interaction and communication. Therefore, the pupil response has possibilities to enhance a sharing of empathy and to convey rich affects such as a pleasure with laugh. Hence, in order to develop communication systems which enhance empathy, it is desired to design the media representation of pupil response. In this paper, focusing on the laugh with pleasure emotion as a typical pleasure affect, we analyzed the relation between laugh and pupil response using a pupil measurement device, and developed a pupil response system for inducing empathy by laugh response based on speech input. In addition, we evaluated the pupil response with the laugh by using the developed system. The results demonstrated that the dilated pupil response with the laugh is effective for enhancing empathy.