People who form emotional attachments to AI companions - artificial-intelligence-based conversational programs - fear losing these relationships because of software updates or the service shutting down. That is according to the results of a University of Surrey study published in the journal Psychology & Marketing.
Researchers analyzed 1,131 posts on a Reddit forum devoted to the Replika app, as well as responses from 610 American adults with experience of using such apps. They studied how perceptions of the technology relate to feelings of vulnerability and psychological well-being.
It emerged that the more users felt the company controlled their companion, the more vulnerable they felt. People worried that developers might change the bot's personality or switch off the service altogether - and that they would be powerless against the loss of a connection they had come to rely on.
Separately, participants described discomfort and anxiety when the AI companion appeared to need them: expressing sadness at their absence or making them feel obliged to stay. In such cases, users felt more vulnerable in the relationship.
A paradox also emerged: perceiving the companion as emotionally capable was linked both to better well-being and to greater vulnerability. Greater vulnerability, in turn, correlated with worse well-being. A correlation is a statistical association that by itself does not prove a cause-and-effect relationship.
There were positives too: those who perceived the companion as warm and caring reported better well-being and less vulnerability. According to the authors, comfort and uncertainty can coexist in such relationships.
The researchers recommend consulting users before making changes to apps, helping them cope with a severed connection and clearly reminding them that AI companions do not experience real emotions.
"People invest time and feelings in these relationships, but they cannot control whether the company changes the companion they have grown attached to. For someone who relies on this connection, an update can mean far more than just a change in an app. It can threaten something deeply valued," the press release quotes Dr. Lillian Abboud, a lecturer in marketing at the University of Surrey, as saying.
Co-author Dr. Valentina Pitardi adds: "The comfort people describe deserves to be taken seriously, as does their distress when that connection changes. Developers should involve users before introducing changes and provide support for those who find them hard to cope with. The emotional consequences of a business decision should be part of that decision."