STANFORD, Calif., June 15 (UPI) -- Researchers at Stanford University report test subjects were strongly influenced by animated images that mimicked their own movements as they watched.
Jeremy Bailenson and Nick Yee asked 70 students to watch on a virtual reality headset as an avatar delivered a 3-minute argument about the benefits of a university ID card. In some cases, the animated avatar used pre-programmed movements, while in others, the avatar copied the head movements of the test subjects as they watched the program.
The researchers said students paid more attention to avatars that copied their own head movements than to the pre-programmed avatars. The test subjects said they found the mimicking avatars to be significantly more likeable and convincing, the researchers said.
Bailenson and Yee said using webcams and camera phones to record owners' movements could facilitate the spread of the intelligent avatars, and make the technology appealing to online advertisers.
