The affective outcomes of using influence tactics in embodied conversational agents

In this study, we highlight the theoretical underpinnings of human impression management tactics and link them to current research in embodied conversational agents. Specifically, we incorporated impression management behaviors into an embodied conversational agent in order to show that different influence strategies affect user perceptions, and how those perceptions might be moderated by user gender. We programmed the agent to use two human impression management techniques (ingratiation and self-promotion) and had the agent interact with 88 users. After the interaction, users reported their perceptions of the system's power, trustworthiness, expertise, and attractiveness. The impression management techniques altered users' perceptions and these perceptions were moderated by gender differences.