A Tool for Experimenting with Theories of Emotion in MultiAgent Systems

Abstract

In order to synthetize affective states, computer systems use emotion theories from psychology, that provide guidelines for deciding what kind of emotion, and with what intensity, should be elicited in a given situation. According to most theories, the emotions of an agent depend on the subjective appraisal of situations. While they provide essential knowledge for the generation of synthetic emotions, these theories do not specify all aspects necessary for the design of computational systems that implement them. So, when designing computational agents that “experience” affective states, computer scientists have a long way to go, and many decisions to make, to produce the information necessary to theories of emotion. When all these difficulties are overcome, still a lot of experimenting is necessary to make adjustments to the formulas and algorithms used.

This work was partially supported by IDMEC (Institute of Mechanical Engineering - Intelligent Systems Center - Lisbon) and the EC project HUMAINE.