IC-portal: An Integrated Communication Support System for Understanding a Social Problem

We propose IC-portal which is a novel Web-based integrated communication support system for understanding a social problem. Understanding a social problem is important for our decision making, however, it is difficult because large amount of disordered information can be found on the Internet. For understanding a social problem, (a) comprehensive multimedia presentations so that one can find an overview of the problem easily, (b) discussion support functions so that one can exchange their opinions on the problem with others, and (c) functions for understanding social concerns of the problem are important. IC-portal is a Web-portal construction kit that provides (1) interactive multimedia presentations with a conversational agent, (2) discussion support functions that can identify key opinions, and (3) an analysis function of social concerns on the problem. Design concepts and an overview of the prototype system are described.