ESCAP: Towards the Design of an AI Architecture for a Virtual Counselor to Tackle Students´ Exam Stress

Exam stress is a common predicament faced by students of all age groups and cultures. Unfortunately, it has neither created much consternation in the society nor attracted much interest for serious research, perhaps due to its impulsive causal nature that disappears almost instantly after the exams are over. Stress in optimal level can stimulate students to achieve their personal best in their exams. However, one of the greatest threats to the well-being of students arises due to the fallout of excessive stress, which, if not addressed timely may not only lead to failure in exams, but result in serious debilitating consequences including insomnia, depression and even suicide. Our research aims to design a human computer interaction (HCI) interface using artificial intelligence (AI) techniques for modeling a virtual exam-stress counsellor ESCAP, an embodied conversational agent with facial animation, advice and intelligence of a professional psychologist to support undergraduate students in managing their exam stress.