  Experiential learning has been known to be an engaging and effective modality
for personal and professional development. The Metaverse provides ample
opportunities for the creation of environments in which such experiential
learning can occur. In this work, we introduce a novel architecture that
combines Artificial intelligence and Virtual Reality to create a highly
immersive and efficient learning experience using avatars. The framework allows
us to measure the interpersonal effectiveness of an individual interacting with
the avatar. We first present a small pilot study and its results which were
used to enhance the framework. We then present a larger study using the
enhanced framework to measure, assess, and predict the interpersonal
effectiveness of individuals interacting with an avatar. Results reveal that
individuals with deficits in their interpersonal effectiveness show a
significant improvement in performance after multiple interactions with an
avatar. The results also reveal that individuals interact naturally with
avatars within this framework, and exhibit similar behavioral traits as they
would in the real world. We use this as a basis to analyze the underlying audio
and video data streams of individuals during these interactions. Finally, we
extract relevant features from these data and present a machine-learning based
approach to predict interpersonal effectiveness during human-avatar
conversation. We conclude by discussing the implications of these findings to
build beneficial applications for the real world.
