Anthropomorphism in AI

The field studies how people interpret AI systems as humanlike, including chatbots, companion apps, robots, and AI toys, and how those interpretations affect trust, attachment, and behavior. Researchers use controlled user studies, surveys, linguistic analysis, and benchmarks to test the effects of conversational warmth, empathy, mimicry, and other humanlike cues. Philosophical and design approaches examine how terms such as intention, agency, and consciousness shape evaluations and governance, while proposing ways to communicate systems’ capabilities and limits more clearly. A central tension is that humanlike interaction can make systems feel engaging and socially natural, but may also encourage misplaced trust or unsupported beliefs about their minds; how to measure and mitigate these effects across contexts remains unsettled.