People may be more willing to hand over their private information to a machine, rather than a human, because they view machines as more trustworthy and less apt to have designs on their data. That could lead to positive — and negative — results, according to Penn State researchers.
Developers may think that adding humanlike features — like an icon or a name — to their chatbot may make it more relatable. However, users may react strongly against a chatbot with human features that doesn't have the swift back-and-forth of a normal conversation.
Most people are OK with a chatbot or robot that are programmed to respond with empathetic, or sympathetic responses. However, if someone is afraid that robots might be conscious, those same responses can be seen as disconcerting, or creepy.
