Gaze direction as a backchannel inviting cue in dialogue

In this study, we experimentally explore the relationship between gaze direction and backchannels in face-to-face interaction. The overall motivation is to use gaze direction in a virtual agent as a mean to elicit user feedback. The relationship between gaze and backchannels was tested in an experiment in which participants were asked to provide feedback when listening to a storytelling virtual agent. When speaking, the agent shifted her gaze towards the listener at predefined positions in the dialogue. The results show that listeners are more prone to backchannel when the virtual agent’s gaze is directed towards them than when it is directed away. However, there is a high response variability for different dialogue contexts which suggests that the timing of backchannels cannot be explained by gaze direction alone.