Automatic identification of positive or negative language

Personal coaching, performed by professionals such as psychologists, usually includes training for business as well as social situations such as job interviews, business meetings, interaction with a customer service provider, and more. This requires careful preparation in which, among other traits, the trainees need to pay attention to the words they choose in the interaction, in order to make a positive impression. To achieve this goal, we have developed a coaching system using speech recognition, which enables both monitoring by the coaching professional and self-training by the user. By providing timely indications as to when the user employs positive or negative expressions as defined by the psychologist, the system helps users develop self-control and awareness regarding the language they use. The system consists of adjusted voice activity detection (VAD) and key word spotting (KWS) algorithms, implemented together with an interactive UI into an Android-based application, available on cellular phones.