Patent ID: 8469713

Claim:
A method of assessing one or more characteristics pertinent to interpersonal interactions possessed by an individual, the method comprising: establishing a simulated environment using at least one computer; establishing at least one computer-controlled scenario avatar within the simulated environment using the at least one computer, wherein the at least one computer-controlled scenario avatar has a human appearance and is programmed to exhibit emotional behavior and cognitive behavior emulating a human in response to a user's input received via an input device operably coupled to the computer, wherein the user's input comprises a plurality of emotional components and a plurality of cognitive components, wherein the at least one scenario avatar's response to the user's input comprises a plurality of emotional components and a plurality of cognitive components, and wherein the input device includes an audio input device to capture voice input and an imaging input device to capture body language input; presenting a user with at least one scenario within the simulated environment using the at least one computer, wherein the at least one scenario includes an emotional and cognitive interaction between the user and the at least one scenario avatar, and wherein the at least one scenario is selected based upon a state of at least one characteristic pertinent to interpersonal interactions possessed by the user prior to presentation of the at least one scenario; capturing the user's input using the at least one input device; and using the at least one computer to assess the at least one characteristic pertinent to interpersonal interactions possessed by the user using the captured user input.