The Appraisal Theory of Emotion in Human–Computer Interaction

Abstract

This chapter reviews the appraisal theory of emotion and how it has been employed in human–computer interaction (HCI) research. This theory views emotion as a process that evaluates the subjective significance of an event. We demonstrate the usefulness of the perspective for HCI, as emotion is defined in terms of the events of the task environment and the goals and knowledge of the subject. Importantly, the appraisal theory ties these factors together in a cognitive appraisal process order to explain the variety of subjective emotional experiences. This is important for two reasons. First, a strong theoretical commitment allows researchers and designers to derive testable hypotheses from the theory. Second, only a theory that ties together goals, knowledge and emotion can explain the behaviour and experiences of users, who often have multiple—and at times conflicting—goals and motivations that may dynamically change in response to events in the environment.