Interacting Like Humans? Understanding the Effect of Anthropomorphism on Consumers Willingness to Pay in Online Auctions

Abstract

Most research examining individuals' bidding

Facing the Artificial: Understanding Affinity, Trustworthiness, and Preference for More Realistic Digital Humans

“…After all, even the best advice provided by a digital agent is useless unless the humans using the agent are willing to accept its advice. This research shows that consumers' beliefs, attitudes, perceptions and behaviors are influenced by the representation or display of the agent or an object, especially if it triggers anthropomorphizing -a in which users ascribe human-like characteristics to the agent [23,44,45,13,11,1]. AI Agent AA An AI-controlled digital agent entity with no human involvement in the interaction.…”

“…One way to trigger anthropomorphizing is by adding a face to a virtual agent [44,45]. Digital human entities with more human-like faces are beginning to appear in certain high-end applications and research.…”

Negative Consequences of Anthropomorphized Technology: A Bias-Threat-Illusion Model

“…Many different terms and threads prevail in the research on AT, including "human-like" "humanness" [26] or anthropomorphism [49].We will discuss and compare one major thread of AT and then one general research thread on non-human agents. Various fields such as marketing, organization theory, and Proceedings of the 52nd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences | 2019 URI: https://hdl.handle.net/10125/60106 ISBN: 978-0-9981331-2-6 (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) anthropology has advanced our knowledge of anthropomorphism in general without a special focus on technology.…”

“…Such characteristics can be related to technology design, interaction, and context, among other features. Visual and auditory human-like characteristics can enhance the anthropomorphism process [49], and technology that allows human-like interaction can intensify the process as well [34]. Vivid media also have been shown to strengthen the perceived humanness of the communication agents [19].…”

“…ATs have been found to serve effective roles, including as users' co-workers, assistants, and emotional support at home. Imbuing anthropomorphized design elements into IT has been found to lead to high use intentions [38], trust [48], enjoyment [47], and higher purchase intentions [49], as well as to counteract negative moods brought on by social exclusion [32].…”