Authors’ names:
- Andrey G. Fomin, Natalia V. Torchakova – Kemerovo State University, Kemerovo, Russia
Abstract:
The article considers polycode chatbot communication tools. Digitalization, transfer of communication to media space and, finally, the development of artificial intelligence are changing our communication paradigms. The vast majority of media texts, be it advertising, online articles, videos, communication with friends or clients, etc., are of polycode nature. The “human — human” communication model is transferred to “human — bot” communication, preserving the already familiar polycode components (i.e., semiotic codes) including verbal and non-verbal components such as language, images, sounds, colors, fonts, and music. The development and widespread implementation of such functions as natural language processing, machine learning, and mood analysis have made it possible to take chatbot communication to a new level: they chatbots are able to conduct a dialogue, analyze human speech, and recognize the tone of the interlocutor using certain speech markers. Chatbots’ capabilities and range of functions are constantly expanding. However, people want to communicate with people. Therefore, by applying such characteristics as multimodality and polycode components to a chatbot, we, thus, seem to humanize it. The present study examines and describes the usage of polycode components by two chatbots Replika in English and Xiaoice （小冰）in Chinese. Analysis of chatbot communication texts using Replika and Xiaoice chatbots as examples has demonstrated that, despite the dominance of written text messages, they can already communicate using polycode texts. Although the variety and possibilities of using various semiotic codes are still limited and often determined by humans, the ability of chatbots to implement polycode communication models opens up new and broader opportunities for their use in different areas of life (education, medicine, customer support), making interactions between a person and a chatbot easier and more familiar.
| Section | LANGUAGE AND CULTURE |
| DOI: | 10.47388/2072-3490/lunn2023-64-4-224-239 |
| Downloads | 77 |
| Key words | polycode; chatbot communication; means of communication; artificial intelligence; verbal and non-verbal means |