Think it over: What AI does for us versus what it’s doing to us
The Second Self: Computers and the Human Spirit and Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other. She has taught at MIT along with Joseph Weizenbaum and also studied people’s interaction with Eliza, terming our emotional engagement the ‘Eliza Effect.’ Her new MIT study explores how our digital relationships affect our understanding of human connections and is also an attempt to develop methodologies that study how artificial empathy changes our relational capacity.
Turkle coins an interesting term, ‘artificial intimacy.’ The study had participants from a wide range of backgrounds and demographic groups. As either new or regular users of AI-based conversational tools such as Replika, Pi, Woebot and ChatGPT, they were found to experience an emotional bond with the technologies they were engaging with.
The result of this study raises some points that might have a far-reaching impact on society and perhaps even on the evolution of our species. First, all or the majority of participants found it easier to deal with machines than humans, because it replaces “stressful human connections." Real relationships have more friction and are relatively difficult to deal with.
Talking to machines make people feel less vulnerable, as there is no friction, no second-guessing and no fear of being left behind. A machine friend (or companion) can offer legitimacy and validation.
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