Political conversation is the core of democracy and voting. Recent studies suggest that it helps in refining our opinions, coming up with solutions to common problems, reducing violent conflicts and encouraging voting. However, discussions, which are shifting to online platforms, have become more polarized and hostile in both the United States and worldwide. Human mediators have some success in moderating these debates, but it is challenging due to the large number of simultaneous conversations occurring on social media. Researchers at Brigham Young University, Duke University, and University of Washington wanted to find out if artificial intelligence (AI) could help. Their study showed that an AI chat assistant using GPT, an AI tool, could improve the quality and courtesy of online political conversations.
A political psychologist states that people are uncomfortable with disagreements and avoid political discussions because of disagreement. The AI was instructed to make subjects’ communications more friendly. The researchers recruited participants with varying opinions on gun control and found that the AI chat assistant helped the participants respond to each other more civilly. The intervention seemed to work as the quality of conversation was rated higher by the conversation partners. Participants felt like they had a better experience compared to those in the non-AI group.
The test results provide compelling evidence that inviting a chatbot into a impassioned conversation has the power to improve the conversation and respect among participants. The conversations didn’t change anyone’s opinion, but the study aimed to improve people’s probability of avoiding distasteful disagreements while engaging in an online discussion– and the chatbot’s intervention did just that. The researchers believe AI has the potential to scale the results online across different discussion platforms, leading to more civilized conversations, more democracy, and more understanding of differing opinions.
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