Browsing by Subject "Alexa"

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Alexa as a shopping assistant : the effects of message interactivity and the mediating role of social presence
(2020-05-13) Lee, Sangwook, M.A.; Oh, Jeeyun
This study explores the key factors that influence consumer intention to use virtual assistants for online shopping. It examines (a) whether existing concepts in communication technology literature (particularly message interactivity and social presence) are applicable to understanding consumer responses to virtual assistants and (b) the mediating role of social presence which influences intention to use virtual assistant technology for online shopping. Results showed that individuals who had more back-and-forth conversations with Alexa reported higher perceptions of message interactivity and greater feelings of social presence. Feelings of social presence mediated the effect of message interactivity on attitude to use and it also mediates intention to use. The current study provides several theoretical and practical implications to communication technology and consumer research and gives suggestions for future study of artificial intelligence
Differences in the use of AI assistants : how human values influence AI assistant use or disuse
(2018-05-03) Golden, Kathryn Elinor; Fleischmann, Kenneth R.
This report is an analysis of the usage of artificial intelligence (AI) personal assistants such as Siri, Google Assistant, and Alexa through the examination of how an individual’s personal values influence their use of these devices. These assistants have become a built-in component of many technologies, and yet there is not a large amount of research on their utilization. Like most consumer level technologies, individual preferences determine how and when they will be used. Artificial assistants exist in a multitude of forms that most technology-using people will interact with, from bot assistance on websites or through the phone, to the personalized artificial intelligences used like the aforementioned Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant. These specific assistants are utilized for everything from turning on the news to making purchases with the owner’s credit card information. They are privy to a multitude of personal information, and like most new technology, the level of comfort that people have using these devices varies depending on individual preferences. This report utilized a survey that focused on the Portrait Values Questionnaire created by Schwartz (2007) and made gender neutral by Verma, Fleischmann, and Koltai (2017) as well as in-depth, semi-structured, open-ended interviews. The ten interviews generated a greater understanding of individual perceptions of these devices and allowed for a more in depth look at specific examples and perspectives that strengthened the findings from the survey. The ultimate purpose of the report was to analyze how human values affect an individual’s use of these devices as one step towards a greater understanding of human values’ impact on technology, and how technology can be best created for humanity in turn.