Whispering salesperson: perceptual illusion of interpersonal distance and ventriloquism effect in service of virtual environment by use of whisper voice

The opportunities to receive and provide services on virtual environment (VE) continue to increase. In this study, we focused on the voice in VE, and investigated the effects of whisper voice, which is used in intimate relationships, on interpersonal distance between salesperson and customer and the effective range of ventriloquism effect. The experimental results showed two results when the salesperson used whisper voice. The interpersonal distance between them was significantly smaller than that of the normal voice. The effective range of the ventriloquism effect was significantly larger on the front side and significantly smaller on the backside compared to normal voice.