Social boundaries of appropriate speech in HCI: A politeness perspective

This position paper presents the view that there may be social boundaries in appropriate speech in HCI. While previous research has examined that humanlike voices may not always be appropriate for computers to use, the same may hold true for linguistic concepts that have noticeable interpersonal and social functions. This paper examines the social functions of linguistic politeness to approach the issue of appropriate language use in spoken HCI, and the relationship between voices and language in this interaction space. Several studies exploring politeness in spoken HCI are discussed, with the view that it and other social talk may have different limitations in HCI, and that politeness itself may have to be subsequently reconsidered.