Close Encounters of the Fifth Kind: Recognizing System-Initiated Engagement as Interaction Type

We posit that the well-established interaction type “tool- box” currently providing the four interaction types Instruct- ing, Conversing, Manipulating, and Exploring should be expanded to include a fifth interaction type, Responding, that accounts for user engagements in response to a sys- tem-initiated engagement request. This expansion reflects that increasingly, smart systems request input from users without having been prompted by them, which is the essence of the existing interaction types. Systems utilizing the Responding interaction type proactively seek input from users in situations where said input is required.