Regulating Ruminative Web-browsing Based on the Counterbalance Modeling Approach

Abstract: Even though the web environment facilitates daily life, emotional problems caused by its incompatibility with human cognition are becoming increasingly serious. To alleviate negative emotions during web use, we developed a browser extension that presents memorized product images to users, in the form of web advertisements. This system utilizes the cognitive architecture Adaptive Control of Thought-Rational (ACT-R) as a model of memory and emotion. A heart rate sensor modulates the ACT-R model parameters: The emotional states of the model are synchronized or counterbalanced with the physiological state of the user. An experiment demonstrates that the counterbalance model suppresses negative ruminative web browsing. The authors claim that this approach is advantageous in terms of explainability.