Designing Conversational Interfaces to Reduce Dissonance
Meira Chefitz, Jesse Austin‐Breneman, Nigel P. Melville · 2018
Conversational interfaces-computer interfaces that use text or voice for human-computer interaction-are one of many interaction modalities in interactive systems. Their use has expanded with the growth and range of products that are both digital and physical in nature. But users' expectations of conversational experiences are not being met. In addition, expectations may not be met in different ways across people. This paper aims to provoke dialogue among design researchers and practitioners regarding the design of an interaction modality that is commonly found in human-to-human interaction. It focuses on the design of conversational interfaces such as virtual assistants to illustrate the quandary. Finally, the paper proposes a phenomenon for the issue-a type of dissonance-and introduces tactics to reduce dissonance. It sheds light on potential approaches to design as well as complications that may occur.