Robots are constantly evolving, from Da Vinci's first robot to humanoids that exist today and are used in various industries. This study examines how a humanoid is perceived as service staff in a car dealership and this was done through a qualitative case study where semi-structured interviews and on-site observations were combined. These were carried out at Riddermark Bil, which is one of Sweden's largest car dealers for used cars. The theory part is based on the concept of anthropomorphism and the uncanny valley theory which are related and important to customers' acceptance of the robot. Anthropomorphism is about giving non-human objects, such as robots, human properties to make it easier to interact with them. Uncanny valley comes into the picture when these human qualities create an expectation in man that is not achieved by the robot and a feeling of discomfort arises in man. This feeling of discomfort is what characterizes the uncanny valley. The analysis showed that uncanny valley exists in the car dealership with the humanoid and customers, and how the degree of anthropomorphism affects the viewer and the interaction. What turned out overall was that most people, customers and staff, are positive about interacting with a humanoid, but present it does not really meet the expectations placed on it. Finally, it is discussed how uncanny valley affects customers in a car dealership and what the reasons for this are.

Hollywood adaptations of Japanese stories derived from manga have failed to connect with a Western audience, and not for a lack of fan interest. Instead, the core issues one encounters are matters of mistranslation, which construct the fatal flaws of American adaptations of manga. In my research, I identify three major errors in adaptation typically present in these narratives. First, I discuss mistranslations of story via analysis of Netflix’s 2017 adaptation of Death Note, which includes plot reduction for the sake of time and budget restraints, as well as conflict rearrangement to fit the traditional Hollywood mold. Next, I discuss mistranslations of cultural values, as successful adaptations of Japanese manga that are accessible in an American context require a trans-cultural fluency American studios seem to lack; I use Paramount Pictures’ Ghost in the Shell (2017) to illustrate this point. Finally, mistranslations of form are present in these failed adaptations. In order to bring the spirit of a manga to life on-screen, many directors have tried to replicate the style of this apparatus to film, often with unsuccessful results due to its jarring deviation from the Western norm. Spike Lee’s Old Boy (2013) becomes case-in-point in this section as I contrast the apparatus of anime to film. Ultimately, I conclude that successful adaptations are quite possible; one merely needs to select the right story and cater it to what American fans of manga find fascinating about the genre—its cultural authenticity and wholly original (and decidedly non-American) ideas.

The goal of this paper is to create a positive account of Masahiro Mori’s theory of the uncanny valley. A theory wherein Mori speculated on the relationship between one’s perceived affinity for a robot and the human-likeness of that same robot. Mori believed that the closer to a human a robot looked, the higher one’s affinity for it would be, until a certain point where the robot looked close enough to a human without being fully convincing. When this happened one would feel a negative affinity for the robot. Mori called this phenomenon the uncanny valley.  In later years, Mori’s theory has gained more popularity and is now applied outside of robotics. Most notably it is often applied to the medium of 3D animation and CGI, which is what this essay will be discussing when trying to create a positive account of the uncanny valley. To do so it will discuss the phenomenon in relation to some examples of 3D animation and CGI that critics have claimed reside in the uncanny valley. This essay will give an overview of what the uncanny valley actually entails as well as give an explanation of how the uncanny valley can be applied to 3D animation.  In order to create a positive account, this essay will claim that the positive aesthetic value that the uncanny valley can lead to is akin to that of Brecht’s idea of the distancing effect. This essay argues that the uncanny valley distances the viewer from what they are viewing and that makes the viewer gain didactic knowledge of both CGI and their own relationship to technology. This essay will argue that this is a positive aesthetic experience that is unique to the uncanny valley.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / The treatment of chronic diseases requires patient adherence to medical advice. Nonadherence worsens health outcomes and increases healthcare costs. Consultations with a virtual physician could increase adherence, given the shortage of healthcare professionals. However, if the virtual physician is a computer animation, acceptance of its advice may be hampered by the uncanny valley effect, a negative affective reaction to human simulations. Two experiments were conducted to investigate the impact of the virtual physician on patients’ adherence. The first study, a 2 ´ 2 ´ 2 between-groups posttestonly experiment, involved 738 participants playing the role of a patient in a hypothetical virtual consultation with a doctor. The consultation varied in the doctor’s Character, Outcome, and Depiction. Character, Outcome, and Depiction were designed to manipulate the doctor’s level of warmth, competence, and realism. The second study, a 2 ´ 5 between-groups experiment, involved 441 participants assuming a patient’s role in a similar hypothetical virtual consultation with a doctor. The experiment varied the doctor’s Character and Depiction. These independent variables were designed to manipulate the doctor’s level of warmth and eeriness. The first study found that warmth and competence increased adherence intention and consultation enjoyment, but realism did not. On the contrary, the computer-animated doctor increased adherence intention and consultation enjoyment significantly more than the doctor portrayed by a human actor. The enjoyment of the animated consultation caused the doctor to appear warmer and more real, compensating for his realism inconsistency. In the second study, Depiction had a nonsignificant effect on adherence intention, even though the computer animated doctor was perceived as eerier than the real human. The low-warmth, high-eeriness doctor prompted heuristic processing of information, while the high-warmth doctor prompted systematic processing. This pattern runs counter to the literature on persuasion. The doctor’s eeriness, measured in a pretest, had no significant effect on adherence intention via the heuristic-systematic model. Although virtual characters can elicit the uncanny valley effect, they were comparable to a real person in increasing adherence intention, adherence and health behavior. This finding should encourage the development and acceptance of virtual consultation to address the shortage of healthcare professionals. / 2023-11-03

The bulk of research in digital 3D animation is focused on problem solving and the development of new techniques and innovations for the 3D animation software of the future. However, little consideration is given for the underlying reasons why problems arise from a psychological perspective, and if 3D animation is to establish itself as a discipline in academia, strides must be taken to strengthen its foundations with existing academic disciplines.This undergraduate thesis examines the possible causes of joint deformation problems inherent to digital human character rigs in Autodesk Maya using cognitive psychology, specifically theories of perception, with additional considerations for the roles of the Uncanny Valley effect and suspension of disbelief. An experiment was devised to evaluate the presence of joint deformation problems on a basic human character rig and in two approaches of solution.The results supported the presented hypothesis on what causes the viewer to notice joint deformation problems, but further investigation is required for test it definitively. The study also implied that whilst joint deformation problems may be noticed by the viewer and cause distraction from the content of a digital film, other factors also strongly affect the viewer’s experience in a similar manner. The results of further studies could help digital artists better understand how the audience may respond to the presence of joint deformation problems and optimise their workflow. / Den övergripande forskningen kring digital 3D-animation är främst fokuserad på problemlösning samt utvecklingen av ny teknik och innovation för framtida programvaror utformade för 3D-animation. Dock har det sällan tagits någon hänsyn till de underliggande anledningarna om varför problemen uppstår, och inte heller genom ett psykologiskt perspektiv. Om 3D-animation ska bli mer etablerat inom den akademiska disciplinen så behöver framsteg göras för att skapa en starkare grund.Denna vetenskapliga uppsats undersöker möjliga anledningar till varför joint-deformationsproblem upplevs med riggen för digitala mänskliga karaktärer i Autodesk Maya. Detta utforskas genom att använda kognitiv psykologi, speciellt teorier kring perception, med ytterligare överväganden om att ”the Uncanny Valley” och ”Suspension of disbelief” skulle vara avgörande faktorer. Ett experiment var utformat för att utvärdera närvarandet av joint-deformationsproblem gällande en grundläggande mänsklig karaktär samt två möjliga lösningar till problemet.Den presenterade hypotesen, om vad som påverkar att en betraktare noterar joint-deformationsproblem, stärktes av undersökningens givna resultat. Dock är fortsatta forskningar kring ämnet nödvändiga för att definitivt bekräfta hypotesens reliabilitet och validitet. Undersökningen visade att problem med joint-deformationer kan noteras av betraktaren och därmed skapa en distraktion för filmens handling, men att andra faktorer kan vara mer avgörande för samma innebörd. Framtida forskningar kan resultera i att hjälpa digitala artister att underlätta deras förståelse om hur en publik kan tänkas reagera på närvarandet av joint-deformationsproblem och att effektivisera deras arbetsprocess.

Artificiella kvinnor har porträtterats efter vissa tematiska utgångspunkter genom kulturhistorien, där Ovidius Pygmalion-myt varit en dominerande tematik. Frågan om artificiella människor är också tätt förknippad med science fiction-genren, och även där har bilden om den ensamme mannen som skapar sig en kvinna ofta återkommit. I denna uppsats jämförs tre science fiction-filmer från 2010-talet - Her (Spike Jonze, 2013), Ex Machina (Alex Garland, 2014) och Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017) - för att utröna hur artificiell femininitet konstruerad av män tar sig uttryck: vilken tematik som är jämförbar med äldre porträtteringar av artificiella kvinnor, och vad dessa samtida inkarnationer kan säga om heteronormativitet inom science fiction-genren i dag och i framtiden. Denna analys görs dels mot bakgrund av nyckelverk inom litteratur och film, delvis genom begrepp som performativitet och andrafiering inom genus- och queerteori.

The usage of virtual assistants is starting to appear within a wide range of application areas. This thesis has been conducted in collaboration with Volvo Cars and more specifically the CAD & Mechanical Development department. It examines how a virtual assistant could facilitate daily product design work at Volvo Cars. This is done by creating a deep understanding of how Design Engineers currently use Volvo Cars CAD Methods or VM’s. The Volvo Cars CAD Methods are instructional documents where Design Engineers find guidance when encountering design related problems. This thesis focuses primarily on the mechanical design aspects of Volvo Cars CAD Methods. The final prototype presented in the thesis is a result of interviews, affinity diagram analysis, requirement analysis, survey, and design iterations. This thesis and the final prototype have shown the interaction design possibilities, limitations, use-cases, and future potential of a virtual assistant Volvo Cars.

As the number of immigrants in Sweden rises, the demand for alternative methods for language learning increases simultaneously. The use of social robots for teaching a second language is a promising field. The following research question has been designed to identify how social robots can be improved to better suit second language learners. The research question is: Which criteria are important for the user experience when interacting with a language cafe robot? The main method used to answer the question is Design Thinking with the help of semi-structured interviews. The results were 12 criteria which can be implemented for social robots in the future. The research has also studied how the criteria can be implemented in robots and to what degree the robot Furhat developed by Furhat robotics has implemented the criteria today. / I takt med det stigande antalet immigranter i Sverige ökar efterfrågan på alternativa metoder för språkinlärning. Användningen av sociala robotar för att undervisa andraspråk är ett lovande fält. Följande forskningsfråga har utformats för att identifiera hur sociala robotar kan förbättras för att anpassas till elever som lär sig andraspråk. Forskningsfrågan lyder enligt följande: Vilka kriterier är viktiga för användarupplevelsen när man interagerar med en språkcaférobot? Den huvudsakliga metoden som används för att svara på frågan är Design Thinking med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer. Resultatet var 12 kriterier som kan implementeras för sociala robotar i framtiden. Rapporten har också studerat hur kriterierna kan implementeras i robotar och i vilken grad roboten Furhat som utvecklats av Furhat Robotics har implementerat kriterierna idag.

We often see anthropomorphic designs in movies as highly intelligent robots, created to make our lives easier, but anthropomorphic is far more common than that. From cameras that look like eyes to face and voice recognition technology and avatars used by companies to support their brands. Despite this, relatively little research has been made about anthropomorphism in smart everyday products, and how that affects the anticipated user experience. Two provocative studies were conducted, where the participants provided their first impressions to picture prototypes. This generated an understanding of the general opinion of anthropomorphic designs, and when added a smart daily product. These studies showed that people are open to the idea of anthropomorphic designs, but the practicality and functionality are crucial. Through identification of multiple themes and thorough analysis, this study can serve as a blueprint to aid future studies about the anticipated user experience of smart daily products with anthropomorphic elements.

Essa pesquisa possui como principal objetivo o estudo dos personagens de marca à luz da teoria do Vale da Estranheza, tendo em vista que personagens considerados estranhos podem influenciar a recepção (SPADONI, 2000; TINWELL, 2014). Desde a publicação seminal de Masahiro Mori em 1970, autor que propôs que robôs muito parecidos com seres humanos evocam uma reação aversiva (MORI; MACDORMAN; KAGEKI, 2012), foi demonstrado que essa reação ocorre sempre que um estímulo não pode ser categorizado como não-humano ou humano (SAYGIN et al., 2012). As implicações sobre as apropriações teóricas dessa abordagem pelo campo da comunicação são exploradas no decorrer dos dois primeiros capítulos. Para mensurar o efeito da estranheza sobre a atitude, foram utilizadas duas escalas: uma escala criada por Ho e MacDorman (2010; 2016) para mensurar a estranheza, e uma escala de atitude criada por Martin et al. (2004). Um total de 396 pessoas responderam a pesquisa online, predominando mulheres (60%), pessoas do Estado de São Paulo (58%), com Ensino Superior Completo ou mais (80%) e média de 29 anos. Foram utilizados os procedimentos de validação de escala para adaptar a escala da estranheza ao contexto brasileiro (DEVELLIS, 2003). Os resultados sugerem a existência de um modelo de estranheza bifatorial com 4 fatores. Contudo, o modelo de segunda ordem com a variável dependente não passou no teste de ajuste exato e aproximado do modelo. Entende-se que essa pesquisa faz contribuições relevantes às Ciências da Comunicação por lançar mão de uma teoria complementar às pesquisas do campo, e de uma metodologia pouco utilizada pelas pesquisas da área. / This research have as a main objective the study of brand characters in light of Uncanny Valley theory, regarding that brand characters that are considered eerie can influence reception (SPADONI, 2000; TINWELL, 2014). Since Masahiro Mori seminal article, in 1970, when the author propose that characaters who appear almost, but not exactly, like real human beings elicit feelings of eeriness and revulsion among some observers, has been show that this reaction occurs always when an stimuli cannot be categorized as human or non-human (SAYGIN et al., 2012). The theoretical implication of this approach by Communication Studies are explored in Chapter 1 and Chapter 2. To measure the uncanny effect toward attitude, two scales has been used: one developed by Ho and MacDorman (2010; 2016) to measure the uncanny, and second to measure attitude developed proposed by Martin et al. (2004). 396 participantes were recruited and answered the online survey, prevailling women (60%), people from São Paulo State (58%), people with Graduate Degree (80%) and an average of 29 years old. Procedures for scale validation has been used to adapt the Uncanny Valley scale to brazilian contexto (DEVELLIS, 2003). The results suggest that the existence of an bifactorial model of Uncanny with 4 factors. However, the second order model with an dependent variable cannot be accepted by statistical índices of exact and approximation test. It is understood that this research makes relevant contributions to the Communication Sciences by using a theory complementary to the field, also by using a methodology that has not been used by other researchs of the area.