Dialogue with computers
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Paul Piwek
Abstract
With the advent of digital personal assistants for mobile devices, systems that are marketed as engaging in (spoken) dialogue have reached a wider public than ever before. For a student of dialogue, this raises the question to what extent such systems are genuine dialogue partners. In order to address this question, this study proposes to use the concept of a dialogue game as an analytical tool. Thus, we reframe the question as asking for the dialogue games that such systems play. Our analysis, as applied to a number of landmark systems and illustrated with dialogue extracts, leads to a fine-grained classification of such systems. Drawing on this analysis, we propose that the uptake of future generations of more powerful dialogue systems will depend on whether they are self-validating. A self-validating dialogue system can not only talk and do things, but also discuss the why of what it says and does, and learn from such discussions.
Abstract
With the advent of digital personal assistants for mobile devices, systems that are marketed as engaging in (spoken) dialogue have reached a wider public than ever before. For a student of dialogue, this raises the question to what extent such systems are genuine dialogue partners. In order to address this question, this study proposes to use the concept of a dialogue game as an analytical tool. Thus, we reframe the question as asking for the dialogue games that such systems play. Our analysis, as applied to a number of landmark systems and illustrated with dialogue extracts, leads to a fine-grained classification of such systems. Drawing on this analysis, we propose that the uptake of future generations of more powerful dialogue systems will depend on whether they are self-validating. A self-validating dialogue system can not only talk and do things, but also discuss the why of what it says and does, and learn from such discussions.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of contributors vii
- Introduction 1
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Part I. Creating characters through dialogue
- Pragmatic stylistics and dramatic dialogue 19
- Dialogue and character in 21st century TV drama 37
- Look who’s talking 55
- All talk 77
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Part II. Involvement, audience design and social interaction
- Studying everyday conversation 95
- Dialogic interactions on radio 117
- Dialogism in journalistic discourse 137
- Friends and followers ‘in the know’ 155
- Dialogue with computers 179
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Part III. Playfulness and narrative functions of dialogue
- Dialogue in Audiophonic Fiction 205
- Dialogue in comics 225
- Dialogue in video games 251
- Dialogue and interaction in role-playing games 271
- Index 291
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of contributors vii
- Introduction 1
-
Part I. Creating characters through dialogue
- Pragmatic stylistics and dramatic dialogue 19
- Dialogue and character in 21st century TV drama 37
- Look who’s talking 55
- All talk 77
-
Part II. Involvement, audience design and social interaction
- Studying everyday conversation 95
- Dialogic interactions on radio 117
- Dialogism in journalistic discourse 137
- Friends and followers ‘in the know’ 155
- Dialogue with computers 179
-
Part III. Playfulness and narrative functions of dialogue
- Dialogue in Audiophonic Fiction 205
- Dialogue in comics 225
- Dialogue in video games 251
- Dialogue and interaction in role-playing games 271
- Index 291
