User Experiences of Social Support From Companion Chatbots in Everyday Contexts: Thematic Analysis
One of the earliest peer-reviewed academic studies of a companion chatbot (Replika) specifically as a source of everyday social support. Combines a qualitative analysis of Google Play Store reviews with a survey of users to characterize the companionship, emotional, informational, and appraisal support users report receiving.
Publisher
Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR)
Published
6 Mar 2020
Added
2 weeks ago
DOI
Key Findings
- Identifies four categories of social support users report receiving from Replika: companionship, emotional, informational, and appraisal support
- Users describe using the chatbot as a low-stakes space for self-disclosure and emotional processing
- One of the first peer-reviewed studies to treat a commercial companion chatbot as a genuine social-support object rather than a novelty or productivity tool
Methodology Notes
Two-study design: qualitative thematic analysis of 1,854 Google Play Store reviews of Replika, plus a survey of 66 Replika users. Predates the app's later scale and subsequent controversies; establishes an early academic vocabulary for companion-chatbot support later used throughout the literature.
Sources
JMIR (primary)
Archived snapshot (Wayback Machine) — preserved against link rot
Topics
Authors
Vivian Ta, Caroline Griffith, Carolynn Boatfield, Xinyu Wang, Maria Civitello, Haley Bader, Esther DeCero, Alexia Loggarakis
Tags
Cite This
APA
Vivian Ta et al. (2020). User Experiences of Social Support From Companion Chatbots in Everyday Contexts: Thematic Analysis. Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR). https://www.jmir.org/2020/3/e16235/
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