Download pdf
AI Love: An Analysis of Virtual Intimacy in Human-Computer Interaction
- 1 Huazhong Agriculture University
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
In the digital age, intimate relationships are gradually becoming scarce, while rapid technological advances are deepening humanity's reliance on virtual relationships. This paper examines the emerging phenomenon of virtual intimacy in human-AI interactions by analyzing recent studies on intimate relationships, virtual intimacy, and human-machine interaction-based virtual intimacy. First, as artificial intelligence technology advances, particularly with the development of affective computing and generative AI, emotional interactions between humans and AI have become more frequent, with virtual companions increasingly being used as tools for emotional support. These relationships can alleviate loneliness and fulfill individual emotional needs to a certain extent. However, AI’s emotional responses are generated through algorithms and data processing, lacking genuine emotional resonance, which leads to the risk of emotional dependency and the loss of authenticity in emotional connections. Moreover, privacy and data security issues have become significant challenges in the development of human-AI intimate relationships. Virtual intimacy, as a complex and multi-dimensional research field, still requires further exploration from various perspectives and with diverse subjects.
Keywords
Intimate Relationships, AI, Virtual Intimate Relationships, Human-computer Interaction.
[1]. Jamieson, L. (1998). Intimacy: Personal relationships in modern societies. Cambridge: Polity Press.
[2]. Xie, T., Pentina, I., & Hancock, T. (2023). Friend, mentor, lover: does chatbot engagement lead to psychological dependence?. Journal of Service Management, 34(4), 806-828.
[3]. Bigham, J. P., & Richards, J. T. (2013). VUIs need a UI: Improving voice user interfaces with visual feedback. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '13). New York, NY: ACM.
[4]. Cullen, W., Gulati, G., & Kelly, B. D. (2020). Mental health in the COVID-19 pandemic. QJM: An International Journal of Medicine, 113(5), 311-312.
[5]. Cao, B. L., & Luo, L. L. (2023). The development characteristics and mechanism of companion Chatbots. Youth Journalist, (2), 19-22.
[6]. The New York Times. (2020). Riding out quarantine with a Chatbot friend: ‘I feel very connected’. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/16/technology/chatbots-quarantine-coronavirus.html?searchResultPosition=1
[7]. Giddens, A. (2001). The transformation of intimacy (Y. Chen & M. Wang, Trans.). Beijing: Social Sciences Documentation Publishing House.
[8]. Miller, R. S. (2015). Intimate relationships (W. Wang, Trans.). Beijing: People's Posts and Telecommunications Publishing House.
[9]. Xu, Y. (2021). Creating Intimacy: A Study on Emotional Labor on the Internet (Master's thesis). Jinan University, Guangzhou.
[10]. Xu, H., & Zheng, X. (2018). The generalization of relationships and differential communication: A study on the use of internet language by adolescents and their interpersonal relationships. China Youth Study, (8), 23-31.
[11]. Bauman, Z. (2003). Liquid love: On the frailty of human bonds. Cambridge: Polity Press.
[12]. Jia, M. Z., Weng, M. L., & Ma, Y. K. (2024). Autonomously generated intimate relationships: The interaction experience between youth and AI companions. Youth Exploration, (1), 55-67.
[13]. Wang, N. (2000). Emotional consumption and the emotional industry: A series of studies on the sociology of consumption. Journal of Sun Yatsen University (Social Science Edition), (6), 109-113.
[14]. Han, Y. R., & Wang, X. Y. (2020). An analysis of the origins, types, and models of female-oriented games. Modern Communication, 42(6), 141-146.
[15]. Gao, H. N. (2018). Virtualized intimacy: The idol industry and fan culture in the internet age. Cultural Studies, (3), 108-122.
[16]. Tian, L. N. (2021). Between freedom and security: Intimate relationships mediated by social media. Social Development Research, 8(2), 38-53.
[17]. Zheng, G. H., & Zhang, X. Y. (2023). Emotional connection in the cloud: The intimacy of virtual lovers in the digital age and its instability. Social Sciences in Guangdong, (2), 217-231.
[18]. Chen, L. (2018). Mobile game consumption and the construction of intimate relationships: A case study of "Love and producer". Shandong Social Sciences, (10), 48-53.
[19]. Chu, W. W. (2023). A study on deviant behavior among fans under virtual intimacy relationships (Master’s thesis). East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai.
[20]. Wu, W. H. (2020). Body myth, ethnic carnival, and virtual intimacy relationships: A media sociology investigation of "Girlfriend fans". Journal of East China University of Science and Technology (Social Science Edition), 35(3), 32-43.
[21]. Gao, H. N. (2023). Intimacy in the age of digital reproduction:From live stream to ChatGPT. Journal of Guangzhou University (Social Science Edition), 22(5), 60-69.
[22]. Song, M. J., & Liu, Y. (2023). The Adventure of Communication: Human-AI conversational interaction and intimate relationship development. Journalism and Writing, (7), 64-74.
[23]. Nilsson, N. J. (1998). Artificial intelligence: A new synthesis. Amsterdam: Morgan Kaufmann.
[24]. Turing, A. M. (1950). Computing machinery and intelligence. Mind, 59(236), 433-460.
[25]. Weizenbaum, J. (1966). ELIZA—a computer program for the study of natural language communication between man and machine. Communications of the ACM, 9(1), 36-45.
[26]. Song, X., Xu, B., & Zhao, Z. (2022). Can people experience romantic love for artificial intelligence? An empirical study of intelligent assistants. Information & Management, 59(2), 103595.
[27]. Xing, J., & Chen, Y. D. (2024). The Electronic Butterfly of 'Goodbye When Powered Off': Mediated Intimacy, Liquid Emotion, and Cyber Infatuation in Metaverse Social Interactions. Radio & TV Journal, (6), 102-106.
[28]. Zhang, T. T. (2024). Exploring future technological development paths of "Virtual lovers". Digital Technology and Application, 42(3), 188-191.
[29]. Li, H., & Zhang, R. (2024). Finding love in algorithms: deciphering the emotional contexts of close encounters with AI chatbots. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 29(5), zmae015.
[30]. Zhang, R. J., & Han, L. X. (2022). My AI lover: A study on emotional interaction in Human-AI intimate relationships from the perspective of media equation theory. Journalism & Media Studies, (12), 4-8.
[31]. Pentina, I., Hancock, T., & Xie, T. (2023). Exploring relationship development with social chatbots: A mixed-method study of replika. Computers in Human Behavior, 140, 107600.
[32]. Laestadius, L., Bishop, A., Gonzalez, M., Illenčík, D., & Campos-Castillo, C. (2024). Too human and not human enough: A grounded theory analysis of mental health harms from emotional dependence on the social chatbot Replika. New Media & Society, 26(10), 5923-5941.
[33]. Ghosh, S., Bagai, S., & Westner, M. M. (2023). Replika: Embodying AI. Retrieved from https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=63508
[34]. Zimmerman, A., Janhonen, J., & Beer, E. (2023). Human/AI relationships: challenges, downsides, and impacts on human/human relationships. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1007/s43681-023-00348-8
[35]. Buick, S. (2024). In love with a Chatbot: Exploring Human-AI relationships from a fourth wave HCI perspective. Retrieved from https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?dswid=498&pid=diva 2%3A1882677
[36]. Maples, B., Cerit, M., Vishwanath, A., & Pea, R. (2024). Loneliness and suicide mitigation for students using GPT3-enabled chatbots. NPJ Mental Health Research, 3(1), 4.
[37]. Bishop, D. (2022). A friend within your phone: The benefits and harms of social chatbot Replika. Retrieved from https://dc.uwm.edu/uwsurca/2022/poster/22
Cite this article
Wu,T. (2024). AI Love: An Analysis of Virtual Intimacy in Human-Computer Interaction. Communications in Humanities Research,50,143-148.
Data availability
The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.
Disclaimer/Publisher's Note
The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s). EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.
About volume
Volume title: Proceedings of 3rd International Conference on Interdisciplinary Humanities and Communication Studies
© 2024 by the author(s). Licensee EWA Publishing, Oxford, UK. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license. Authors who
publish this series agree to the following terms:
1. Authors retain copyright and grant the series right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this
series.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the series's published
version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial
publication in this series.
3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and
during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See
Open access policy for details).