Interaction and feedback in a spoken language system: a theoretical framework

In human-computer interaction, as in conversation, neither partner is omniscient. To facilitate repairs when problems arise, an interface needs to enable both user and system to coordinate their separate knowledge states. The paper presents a conversational feedback model for human-computer interaction based on a collaborative theory of human communication, and this model is used to systematically provide context-sensitive feedback messages from an application-independent spoken language system. A simulation, an informal user study, and a working prototype use this model in a telephone agent application that allows dialing by voice.