EAGER: Virtual Personality Assessment Laboratory

Northeastern University, Boston MA

Investigators

Abstract

The goal of this project is to develop the principles to design a virtual personality assessment laboratory. This requires development of a preliminary taxonomy of mechanics, grounded on personality research, that allows researchers to use behavioral patterns of individuals in computer-generated virtual environments, to assess their real-world personality. Such virtual personality detection mechanisms can then be used by other researchers to adapt the laboratory further, which would be one ultimate goal: the design of more personalized and adaptive applications that may improve impact on large societal problems. The research activity will lead to a new methodology with the potential to transform current practices across disciplines, from social psychology to human-centered computing. The virtual personality assessment laboratory will be developed as a set of modular challenges and situations that make use of the mechanics individuated in the taxonomy. These situations are constructed to elicit personality preferences. The design is driven by personality theory and validated by a wide range of personality measures such as the Need For Cognition, the California Q-Sort, the Reiss Motivation Profiler and the Five Factor Model. The system will be validated through two iterations to ensure that scenarios are assimilated and that they conform to the intention of the designers. A final summative evaluation will be administered utilizing data on the behavior of research subjects inside the environment, as well as various personality measures such as scores from personality questionnaires, informant interviews, and behavior coding. Correlation analysis will be used to investigate relationships between choices emerging from the context of action in the virtual environment and personality scores. This research impacts directly a number of disciplines from psychology of personality to adaptive technologies and personalization. The research affects our understanding of personality within virtual environments, which are becoming a major part of our lives. It also has the potential of developing customizable learning environments. Understanding individual differences through the analysis of consumption and behavior of digital entertainments allows for a deeper level of adaptation and personalization of persuasive technologies aimed at fostering education, health or training, potentially increasing participation from all segments of society.