Revisiting the uncanny valley theory: Developing and validating an alternative to the Godspeed indices

Mori (1970) proposed a hypothetical graph describing a nonlinear relation between a character’s degree of human likeness and the emotional response of the human perceiver. However, the index construction of these variables could result in their strong correlation, thus preventing rated characters from being plotted accurately. Phase 1 of this study tested the indices of the Godspeed questionnaire as measures of humanlike characters. The results indicate significant and strong correlations among the relevant indices (Bartneck, Kuli?, Croft, & Zoghbi, 2009). Phase 2 of this study developed alternative indices with nonsignificant correlations (p > .05) between the proposed y-axis eeriness and x-axis perceived humanness (r = .02). The new humanness and eeriness indices facilitate plotting relations among rated characters of varying human likeness.