Understanding Subjectivity: An Interactionist View

User modeling is traditionally about constructing an explicit representation of the user. We argue against such approach because it overlooks the real nature of the human brain: plasticity and absence of monolithic control. Instead, we suggest to focus not on the modeling of the primary mechanism that explains a user’s response but on the mechanisms through which technology can mediate as complex information as subjective responses. Indeed the only way two persons can reach mutual understanding over such responses is social interaction. We propose a novel architecture based on three main components: (1) an elaborate sensory(motor) apparatus, (2) a dynamical memory and (3) an active interface with turn-taking capability. It supports the interactive emergence of a common symbolic language through which user and system can share subjective responses over visual perceptions. We assert that while the “user model” is not explicitly constructed, it reveals in the interactive dialog between the user and the machine.