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Pages
- Title
- Customer evaluation of managers' responses to online complaints.
- Creator
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Olson, Eric, Ro, Heejung, Croes, Robertico, Clark, M. H., Severt, Denver, Oliphant, Rebecca, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Managers have begun to respond to customers' online reviews of services on online review websites. However, it is not known how viewers evaluate company-initiated service recovery in the form of manager responses to online reviews. This research has three objectives: (1) to explore how managers are currently responding to electronic word of mouth; (2) to investigate whether a manager's response to electronic negative word of mouth (eNWOM) positively influences viewers' behavioral intentions; ...
Show moreManagers have begun to respond to customers' online reviews of services on online review websites. However, it is not known how viewers evaluate company-initiated service recovery in the form of manager responses to online reviews. This research has three objectives: (1) to explore how managers are currently responding to electronic word of mouth; (2) to investigate whether a manager's response to electronic negative word of mouth (eNWOM) positively influences viewers' behavioral intentions; (3) to examine which elements in a manager's responses increases viewers' evaluations of trust and behavioral intentions towards the company.Three studies were conducted, one for each objective. Study #1 examined 21,211 online reviews and manager responses from Tripadvisor.com from 184 hotels in five cities. Study #2 was a single-factor between-subject experimental design by manipulating a manager's response to eNWOM (response message vs. no response message) through scenarios. Study #3 was a 2 (procedural justice: high vs. low) x 2 (interactional justice: high vs. low) x 2 (social presence: high vs. low) between-subject experimental design that manipulated manager's responses through scenarios.Findings from Study #1 revealed that managers were more likely to respond to eNWOM compared to neutral word of mouth. A content analysis of 432 company responses to eNWOM determined that managers used nine online review management strategies: appreciation, apology, future patronage encouragement, explanation, follow up, flexibility, correction, compensation, and social presence. Results from Study #2 indicated that viewers were more likely to visit a restaurant when a manager responded to eNWOM compared to no response to eNWOM. Results from Study #3 revealed a three-way interaction of procedural justice, interactional justice, and social presence on trust. There were also main effects of procedural justice and interactional justice on trust. Additionally, results provided partial support for the mediating role of trust in the relationship between the three-way interaction and behavioral intentions. This study contributes to the online service recovery literature and online trust formation literature by enhancing the understanding of how viewers evaluate manager responses to eNWOM and how social presence can be used with procedural justice and interactional justice to enhance trust in the online review management context. Service organizations should create a comprehensive online review system to respond to eNWOM and identify ways to enhance procedural justice, interactional justice, and social presence into their responses. Online review websites should encourage companies to provide managerial response to online complaints and allow for social presence and enhanced creative options in manager responses.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005390, ucf:50462
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005390
- Title
- Mediated Physicality: Inducing Illusory Physicality of Virtual Humans via Their Interactions with Physical Objects.
- Creator
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Lee, Myungho, Welch, Gregory, Wisniewski, Pamela, Hughes, Charles, Bruder, Gerd, Wiegand, Rudolf, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The term virtual human (VH) generally refers to a human-like entity comprised of computer graphics and/or physical body. In the associated research literature, a VH can be further classified as an avatar(-)a human-controlled VH, or an agent(-)a computer-controlled VH. Because of the resemblance with humans, people naturally distinguish them from non-human objects, and often treat them in ways similar to real humans. Sometimes people develop a sense of co-presence or social presence with the...
Show moreThe term virtual human (VH) generally refers to a human-like entity comprised of computer graphics and/or physical body. In the associated research literature, a VH can be further classified as an avatar(-)a human-controlled VH, or an agent(-)a computer-controlled VH. Because of the resemblance with humans, people naturally distinguish them from non-human objects, and often treat them in ways similar to real humans. Sometimes people develop a sense of co-presence or social presence with the VH(-)a phenomenon that is often exploited for training simulations where the VH assumes the role of a human. Prior research associated with VHs has primarily focused on the realism of various visual traits, e.g., appearance, shape, and gestures. However, our sense of the presence of other humans is also affected by other physical sensations conveyed through nearby space or physical objects. For example, we humans can perceive the presence of other individuals via the sound or tactile sensation of approaching footsteps, or by the presence of complementary or opposing forces when carrying a physical box with another person. In my research, I exploit the fact that these sensations, when correlated with events in the shared space, affect one's feeling of social/co-presence with another person. In this dissertation, I introduce novel methods for utilizing direct and indirect physical-virtual interactions with VHs to increase the sense of social/co-presence with the VHs(-)an approach I refer to as mediated physicality. I present results from controlled user studies, in various virtual environment settings, that support the idea that mediated physicality can increase a user's sense of social/co-presence with the VH, and/or induced realistic social behavior. I discuss relationships to prior research, possible explanations for my findings, and areas for future research.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2019
- Identifier
- CFE0007485, ucf:52687
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007485
- Title
- Examining Emotional Responses to Effective Versus Ineffective Virtual Buddies.
- Creator
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Ingraham, Kathleen, Gunter, Glenda, Boote, David, Taylor, Rosemarye, Hughes, Charles, Proctor, Michael, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The purpose of this research study was to explore the impact of virtual character design on user emotional experience and user behavior in a simulated environment. With simulation training increasing in popularity as a tool for teaching social skills, it is essential that social interactions in virtual environments provide authentic opportunities for practice (Swartout et al., 2006). This study used Interactive Performance Theory (Wirth, 2012) to examine the effect of designing a virtual...
Show moreThe purpose of this research study was to explore the impact of virtual character design on user emotional experience and user behavior in a simulated environment. With simulation training increasing in popularity as a tool for teaching social skills, it is essential that social interactions in virtual environments provide authentic opportunities for practice (Swartout et al., 2006). This study used Interactive Performance Theory (Wirth, 2012) to examine the effect of designing a virtual buddy character with ineffective traits instead of effective or expert traits. The sample population for this study (n = 145) consisted of first year university students enrolled in courses in the fall of 2013 at the University of Central Florida. Data on participant emotional experience and behavior were collected through questionnaires, researcher observations, and physiological signal recording that included participant heart rate and galvanic skin response. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variances (MANOVA), Kruskal-Wallis one-way analysis of variance, and qualitative thematic coding of participant verbal behavior and written responses. Results of the analysis revealed that participants who interacted with an ineffective virtual buddy character had statistically significant higher averages of verbal statements to the antagonist in the simulated environment and statistically significant lower perceptions of antagonist amiability than participants who interacted with an effective virtual buddy. Additionally, participants who interacted with a virtual buddy of the opposite gender gave statistically significant higher ecological validity scores to the simulated environment than participants who interacted with a virtual buddy of the same gender. Qualitative analysis also revealed that participants tended to describe the female buddy character with more ineffective traits than the male buddy character even though effective and ineffective design conditions were equally divided for both groups. Further research should be conducted on the effect of virtual buddy character design in different types of simulation environments and with different target audiences.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005633, ucf:50220
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005633
- Title
- An Examination of the Connection Between Genuine Dialogue and Improv.
- Creator
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O'Neal, Kathleen, Hastings, Sally, Katt, James, Musambira, George, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The value of improv training extends beyond the stage. Improv has been successfully utilized and applied in a variety of ways in the workplace, school, and community. This study examines the connection between genuine dialogue and improv to determine if improv exhibits dialogic qualities. Three focus groups were conducted with a total of nineteen improv students. Additionally, an interview was conducted with the director of a hospital's Innovation Lab where improv is used in an organizational...
Show moreThe value of improv training extends beyond the stage. Improv has been successfully utilized and applied in a variety of ways in the workplace, school, and community. This study examines the connection between genuine dialogue and improv to determine if improv exhibits dialogic qualities. Three focus groups were conducted with a total of nineteen improv students. Additionally, an interview was conducted with the director of a hospital's Innovation Lab where improv is used in an organizational setting. The conditions for dialogue set by Gordon (2006) served as a guideline for analyzing data. Thematic analysis generated categories used to analyze data. The most prominent of Gordon's conditions for dialogue within improv were Imagination (&) Innovation, Vulnerability and Immediacy of Presence. The importance of this study, implications and future studies for the connection between improv and dialogue are examined.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005389, ucf:52873
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005389
- Title
- Environmental Physical(-)Virtual Interaction to Improve Social Presence with a Virtual Human in Mixed Reality.
- Creator
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Kim, Kangsoo, Welch, Gregory, Gonzalez, Avelino, Sukthankar, Gita, Bruder, Gerd, Fiore, Stephen, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Interactive Virtual Humans (VHs) are increasingly used to replace or assist real humans in various applications, e.g., military and medical training, education, or entertainment. In most VH research, the perceived social presence with a VH, which denotes the user's sense of being socially connected or co-located with the VH, is the decisive factor in evaluating the social influence of the VH(-)a phenomenon where human users' emotions, opinions, or behaviors are affected by the VH. The purpose...
Show moreInteractive Virtual Humans (VHs) are increasingly used to replace or assist real humans in various applications, e.g., military and medical training, education, or entertainment. In most VH research, the perceived social presence with a VH, which denotes the user's sense of being socially connected or co-located with the VH, is the decisive factor in evaluating the social influence of the VH(-)a phenomenon where human users' emotions, opinions, or behaviors are affected by the VH. The purpose of this dissertation is to develop new knowledge about how characteristics and behaviors of a VH in a Mixed Reality (MR) environment can affect the perception of and resulting behavior with the VH, and to find effective and efficient ways to improve the quality and performance of social interactions with VHs. Important issues and challenges in real(-)virtual human interactions in MR, e.g., lack of physical(-)virtual interaction, are identified and discussed through several user studies incorporating interactions with VH systems. In the studies, different features of VHs are prototyped and evaluated, such as a VH's ability to be aware of and influence the surrounding physical environment, while measuring objective behavioral data as well as collecting subjective responses from the participants. The results from the studies support the idea that the VH's awareness and influence of the physical environment can improve not only the perceived social presence with the VH, but also the trustworthiness of the VH within a social context. The findings will contribute towards designing more influential VHs that can benefit a wide range of simulation and training applications for which a high level of social realism is important, and that can be more easily incorporated into our daily lives as social companions, providing reliable relationships and convenience in assisting with daily tasks.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2018
- Identifier
- CFE0007340, ucf:52115
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007340
- Title
- Physical-Virtual Patient Simulators: Bringing Tangible Humanity to Simulated Patients.
- Creator
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Daher, Salam, Welch, Gregory, Gonzalez, Laura, Cendan, Juan, Proctor, Michael, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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In lieu of real patients, healthcare educators frequently use simulated patients. Simulated patients can be realized in physical form, such as mannequins and trained human actors, or virtual form, such as via computer graphics presented on two-dimensional screens or head-mounted displays. Each of these alone has its strengths and weaknesses. I introduce a new class of physical-virtual patient (PVP) simulators that combine strengths of both forms by combining the flexibility and richness of...
Show moreIn lieu of real patients, healthcare educators frequently use simulated patients. Simulated patients can be realized in physical form, such as mannequins and trained human actors, or virtual form, such as via computer graphics presented on two-dimensional screens or head-mounted displays. Each of these alone has its strengths and weaknesses. I introduce a new class of physical-virtual patient (PVP) simulators that combine strengths of both forms by combining the flexibility and richness of virtual patients with tangible characteristics of a human-shaped physical form that can also exhibit a range of multi-sensory cues, including visual cues (e.g., capillary refill and facial expressions), auditory cues (e.g., verbal responses and heart sounds), and tactile cues (e.g., localized temperature and pulse). This novel combination of integrated capabilities can improve patient simulation outcomes. In my Ph.D. work I focus on three primary areas of related research. First, I describe the realization of the technology for PVPs and results from two user-studies to evaluate the importance of dynamic visuals and human-shaped physical form in terms of perception, behavior, cognition, emotions, and learning.Second, I present a general method to numerically evaluate the compatibility of any simulator-scenario pair in terms of importance and fidelity of cues. This method has the potential to make logistical, economic, and educational impacts on the choices of utilizing existing simulators.Finally, I describe a method for increasing human perception of simulated humans by exposing participants to the simulated human taking part in a short, engaging conversation prior to the simulation.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2018
- Identifier
- CFE0007750, ucf:52402
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007750
- Title
- GAYME: The development, design and testing of an auto-ethnographic, documentary game about quarely wandering urban/suburban spaces in Central Florida.
- Creator
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Moran, David, Moshell, Jack, Santana, Maria, Kim, Si Jung, McDaniel, Thomas, Vie, Stephanie, Pugh, William, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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GAYME is a transmedia story-telling world that I have created to conceptually explore the dynamics of queering game design through the development of varying game prototypes. The final iteration of GAYME is @deadquarewalking*. It is a documentary game and a performance art installation that documents a carless, gay/queer/quare man's journey on Halloween to get to and from one of Orlando's most well-known gay clubs - the Parliament House Resort. "The art of cruising" city streets to seek out...
Show moreGAYME is a transmedia story-telling world that I have created to conceptually explore the dynamics of queering game design through the development of varying game prototypes. The final iteration of GAYME is @deadquarewalking*. It is a documentary game and a performance art installation that documents a carless, gay/queer/quare man's journey on Halloween to get to and from one of Orlando's most well-known gay clubs - the Parliament House Resort. "The art of cruising" city streets to seek out queer/quare companionship particularly amongst gay, male culture(s) is well-documented in densely, populated cities like New York, San Francisco and London, but not so much in car-centric, urban environments like Orlando that are less oriented towards pedestrians. Cruising has been and continues to be risky even in pedestrian-friendly cities but in Orlando cruising takes on a whole other dimension of danger. In 2011-2012, The Advocate magazine named Orlando one of the gayest cities in America (Breen, 2012). Transportation for America (2011) also named the Orlando metropolitan region the most dangerous city in the country for pedestrians. Living in Orlando without a car can be deadly as well as a significant barrier to connecting with other people, especially queer/quare people, because of Orlando's car-centric design. In Orlando, cars are sexy. At the same time, the increasing prevalence in gay, male culture(s) of geo-social, mobile phone applications using Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and location aware services, such as Grindr (Grindr, LLC., 2009) and even FourSquare (Crowley and Selvadurai, 2009) and Instagram (Systrom and Krieger, 2010), is shifting the way gay/queer/quare Orlandoans co-create social and sexual networks both online and offline. Urban and sub-urban landscapes have transformed into hybrid "techno-scapes" overlaying "the electronic, the emotional and the social with the geographic and the physical" (Hjorth, 2011). With or without a car, gay men can still geo-socially cruise Orlando's car-centric, street life with mobile devices. As such emerging media has become more pervasive, it has created new opportunities to quarely visualize Orlando's "technoscape" through phone photography and hashtag metadata while also blurring lines between the artist and the curator, the player and the game designer.This project particularly has evolved to employ game design as an exhibition tool for the visualization of geo-social photography through hashtag play. Using hashtags as a game mechanic generates metadata that potentially identifies patterns of play and "ways of seeing" across player experiences as they attempt to make meaning of the images they encounter in the game. @deadquarewalking also demonstrates the potential of game design and geo-social, photo-sharing applications to illuminate new ways of documenting and witnessing the urban landscapes that we both collectively and uniquely inhabit.*In Irish culture, (")quare(") can mean (")very(") or (")extremely(") or it can be a spelling of the rural or Southern pronunciation of the word (")queer.(") Living in the American Southeast, I personally relate more to the term (")quare(") versus (")queer.(") Cultural theorist E. Patrick Johnson (2001) also argues for (")quareness(") as a way to question the subjective bias of whiteness in queer studies that risks discounting the lived experiences and material realities of people of color. Though I do not identify as a person of color and would be categorized as white or European American, (")quareness(") has an important critical application for considering how Orlando's urban design is intersectionally racialized, gendered and classed.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005214, ucf:50641
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005214
