Exploring Augmented Visual Alterations in Interpersonal Communication

Title of the Paper

Exploring Augmented Visual Alterations in Interpersonal Communication

Paper Information

• Subject Area: Application and impact of Augmented Reality (AR) technology in interpersonal communication
• Keywords: Augmented Reality, visual alteration, interpersonal communication, social acceptability, color theory, subconscious, HCI, ethical issues, technology adoption, wearable technology

Research Background and Issues

• Identified Problems or Challenges:
  1. AR glasses can alter users' visual perception of the environment, which may significantly affect interpersonal communication, as both parties may not share the same view of reality.
  2. Visual alterations caused by AR glasses may impact social acceptability, comfort, and interaction effectiveness.
  3. Current research lacks sufficient exploration of the social and ethical implications of visual alteration technologies.
• Significance of the Research:
  1. AR devices may become a part of daily interpersonal interactions, with impacts extending beyond isolated use.
  2. Investigating the impact of visual alterations from one perspective on the comfort of both parties provides guidance for future device design and applications.
  3. Exploring ethical issues brought about by the technology, such as whether users should be allowed to alter others' visual presentation.
• Motivation and Related Work:
  1. Using color alteration as a universal form of visual modification to explore user acceptability and potential benefits.
  2. The study is based on the "color-context theory," which suggests that specific colors in certain contexts can elicit subconscious psychological responses.
  3. The research references prior studies on the social acceptability of AR devices, personal comfort zones, and visual-tactile acceptability.

Proposed Solution

• Proposed Solution:
  1. Based on the color-context theory, propose the concept of enhancing users' subconscious positive responses by altering colors.
  2. Construct various scenarios, such as job interviews, sports events, and daily life, using AR devices to adjust colors for contextual benefits.
  3. Design and implement an online survey to explore the acceptability and comfort of visual alterations for both wearers and non-wearers.
• Innovations:
  1. Combining the color-context theory with AR technology to explore potential applications of visual color alterations.
  2. Comparing the perceptions of visual alterations between wearers and non-wearers to reveal social and ethical issues.
  3. Using an online survey design to provide a more comprehensive understanding of different relationships (close, acquaintances, strangers) and alteration targets (wearers, non-wearers, objects).
• Implementation Steps and Techniques:
  1. Create hypothetical scenarios and illustrate concepts through images and video examples.
  2. Use a group design in the online survey to separately explore the impact of visual alterations on wearers and non-wearers.
  3. Use comfort as the primary quantitative metric, combined with semantic differential analysis to measure user attitudes.

Research Findings

• Specific Findings:
  1. Most participants expressed acceptance of the concept of visual alterations and willingness to enable the feature, but preferred to be notified and retain final decision-making authority.
  2. Altering the color of objects and the wearer's body parts was more popular, while alterations to non-wearers' body parts were less favored.
  3. Visual alterations to direct body parts (skin) received lower ratings, possibly due to societal concerns about body modification and potential intrusions on identity expression.
• Advantages:
  1. Provides function designs based on scientific theories to enhance user experience.
  2. Reveals psychological and ethical issues in human-technology interaction during visual alterations.
  3. Offers recommendations for future AR device design.
• Experimental or Evaluation Results:
  1. Participants rated comfort significantly higher for alterations to non-skin areas compared to skin areas.
  2. Non-wearers generally showed higher acceptance of visual alterations to themselves and others compared to wearers.
  3. Relationship attributes significantly influenced comfort ratings, especially when altering wearers or non-wearers.
• Limitations and Future Directions:
  1. The study used virtual scenario simulations and did not directly test real device user experiences.
  2. AR technology is still in its early stages of development; future research should conduct more comprehensive real-world tests.
  3. Future studies are encouraged to explore various forms of visual alterations and their ethical implications, as well as to expand the representativeness of participant backgrounds.