Loneliness Playing a Role in Teen-AI Relationships

School Name

Chapin High School

Grade Level

11th Grade

Presentation Topic

Sociology

Presentation Type

Non-Mentored

Abstract

Through the gradual increase in the use of Artificial Intelligence chatbots being more commonly used in society today, strong feelings of attachment to these chatbots have also been on the rise. Loneliness has been one of the main factors for this rise and Generation Z happens to be one of the loneliest groups in American society as they scored a 48.3 out of 80 on the UCLA Loneliness Scale (any score of 43 and above is officially lonely). This research aims to analyze the role that loneliness plays in the strength of a friendship between teenagers and their Character.AI chatbot, Hollis, through the use of a mixed method approach with quasi-experimental and a causal comparative methods being used. Teens were gathered through voluntary sampling and took the UCLA Loneliness Scale in the questionnaire they were given. After this they were separated into two groups of more lonely and less lonely and individually talked to Hollis, a Character.AI chatbot made for this research by the researcher, for a preferred minimum of 5 minutes a day for 4 weeks. At the end of each week, the participants took a questionnaire. Then at the end of the research, a few participants were interviewed to further explain and expand upon their experience throughout the course of this research. A content analysis was conducted afterwards in order to thoroughly determine the role of loneliness in a teen-AI relationship.

Location

RITA 277

Start Date

3-23-2024 11:15 AM

Presentation Format

Oral and Written

Group Project

No

COinS
 
Mar 23rd, 11:15 AM

Loneliness Playing a Role in Teen-AI Relationships

RITA 277

Through the gradual increase in the use of Artificial Intelligence chatbots being more commonly used in society today, strong feelings of attachment to these chatbots have also been on the rise. Loneliness has been one of the main factors for this rise and Generation Z happens to be one of the loneliest groups in American society as they scored a 48.3 out of 80 on the UCLA Loneliness Scale (any score of 43 and above is officially lonely). This research aims to analyze the role that loneliness plays in the strength of a friendship between teenagers and their Character.AI chatbot, Hollis, through the use of a mixed method approach with quasi-experimental and a causal comparative methods being used. Teens were gathered through voluntary sampling and took the UCLA Loneliness Scale in the questionnaire they were given. After this they were separated into two groups of more lonely and less lonely and individually talked to Hollis, a Character.AI chatbot made for this research by the researcher, for a preferred minimum of 5 minutes a day for 4 weeks. At the end of each week, the participants took a questionnaire. Then at the end of the research, a few participants were interviewed to further explain and expand upon their experience throughout the course of this research. A content analysis was conducted afterwards in order to thoroughly determine the role of loneliness in a teen-AI relationship.