Motherboard

Research from Indiana University suggests that men’s decisions upon presentation of information by virtual beings are more affected by unrealistic action than women’s decisions.

The test, published in the latest volume of the journal Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, consisted of men and women test subjects being addressed with an ethical dilemma related to sexual conduct and marital infidelity via an avatar. In some cases, the avatar had more realistic movements, which made men more likely to be sympathetic. More realistic movements on the part of the avatar did not have the same effect on women test subjects.

While this may be interesting news for companies such as Oddcast, the creator of the virtual character service Sitepal, it suggests that men can be manipulated if an avatar is realistic enough. As the study coauthor Karl MacDorman said, “If it is used to manipulate people into taking a course of action they might not otherwise take, such as buying more products or adhering to medical or behavioral advice, that clearly raises ethical concerns. Technology should not be used in ways that diminish human autonomy.”

If there is a sufficient need for naturalistic movements in avatars – and the technology is certainly moving in that direction – it could very well open the door to walking avatars as functioning members of society. Whether they would be taken seriously if they were tall and very blue remains to be seen.