Purpose of the Study:
Over the past few years, numerous AI-powered role-playing chatbots (bots) have emerged online, each designed for a specific niche in a rapidly oversaturating market. One of these AI platforms, Character.ai (C.ai), allows users to talk with their favourite fictional characters and celebrities by creating roleplay chatbots with no programming knowledge necessary. As a result of C.ai’s ability to generate personalized self-insert fanfiction on the go, the platform has become popular among fan communities. The research questions of this study are: “Does the companion chatbot platform, Character.ai, shift fandom’s community-based production into individualized, human-machine intimacy? How might this ‘transformation’ impact Character.ai users' feelings of connection to their fandom?”
Link to the Letter of Information
Please read this letter for more detailed information about this research study. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PsuTLviTKhAtSLaOfrCiTp13n1zlDpmDB8mDz0FvJVw/edit?usp=sharing
What will happen during the study?
You will be asked to answer a series of survey questions on Lime Survey. The questions will explore participants' fandom preferences, fanfiction consumption habits, Character.ai usage and frequency, community connection to fandom online and offline, and attachment to chatbots. It will also ask open-ended questions for more personal and subjective prompts, such as “What do you/ did you use C.ai for?" “Why did you start using C.ai?” and “How does C.ai impact your participation in fandom?” This survey should take about 15 minutes to complete.
Potential Harms, Risks or Discomforts, and Confidentiality
The psychological and social risks are minimal, but could include feelings of loneliness, sadness, embarrassment, or concern over loss of privacy.
You may find it stressful to talk about experiences that you found frustrating or alienating. You do not need to answer questions that you do not want to answer or that make you feel uncomfortable. I describe below the steps I am taking to protect your privacy.
This survey is completely anonymous; no one will know that you participated. Even though I will remove any identifiable information from direct quotes, you may be identifiable by the stories you tell. Any distinguishable information you include in your responses will be removed from the dataset. Your responses will also be kept secure in a password-protected file to ensure complete confidentiality. The information/data you provide will be kept in a password-protected computer that only the researcher has access to. Once the study is complete, a personal archive of the data, without identifying information, will be maintained until August 2028.
Supports and Counselling
'Good2Talk' provides free, confidential support services for post-secondary students in Ontario and Nova Scotia, Canada. If you are outside those Canadian provinces, you can still seek support through the “web message” function of Good2Talk or by using the international toll-free numbers.
Call: 1-866-925-5454
Text: Text GOOD2TALKON to 686868
Website: https://good2talk.ca/
International toll-free numbers: https://good2talk.ca/ontario/student-support-abroad-services/
'Find a Helpline' helps connect individuals with free, confidential support from a helpline or hotline anywhere in the world. This database is home to over 1,700 helplines from 170+ countries and allows you to tailor your search based on your needs.
Website: https://findahelpline.com/
Potential Benefits
Participants may benefit personally from the opportunity to reflect on and share their experiences with Character.ai.
Information About Study Results
If you are interested in learning about the results of this survey and the corresponding study, please email me at kinsellc@mcmaster.ca. This final research project will be emailed to you as a PDF upon its completion.
Participation and Withdrawal
Your participation in this study is voluntary. It is your choice to be part of the study or not. You can stop and exit the survey at any time, and your data will not be saved or used. However, once you submit your answers, they cannot be withdrawn due to the anonymous nature of the survey. If you decide to withdraw, there will be no consequences to you. If you do not want to answer some of the questions, you do not have to, but you can still be in the study.
There are 26 questions in this survey.
