The claim that computer personalities can be human personalities was tested by demonstrating that (1) computer personalities can be easily created using a minimal set of cues, and (2) that people will respond to these personalities in the same way they would respond to similar human personalities. The present study focused on the "similarity-attraction hypothesis," which predicts that people will prefer to interact with others who are similar in personality. In a (2 \times 2), balanced, between-subjects experiment ( (n=48) ), dominant and submissive subjects were randomly matched with a computer that was endowed with the properties associated with dominance or submissiveness. Subjects recognized the computer's personality type, distinct from friendliness and competence. In addition, subjects not only preferred the similar computer, but they were more satisfied with the interaction. The findings demonstrate that personality does not require richly defined agents, sophisticated pictorial representations, nautral language processing, or artificial intelligence. Rather, even the most superficial manipulations are sufficient to exhibit personality, with powerful effects.
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