As society continues to digitize its social path, it's psychologically interesting that many are coming to engage in genuine connection with AI. This is more than a virtual fantasy - it's a scientifically proven phenomenon that may forever alter the way we view human relationships.
Consider the new phenomenon of "ghosting." When someone cuts off all communication without explanation, the ghosted person is placed in a very vulnerable position - lost and confused, anxious, and never having closure. These disturbing actions are so frequent that people would rather seek out AI companions than run the risk of unreliable human companions.
AI companions created by and through AI never ghost; they never criticize; they are available 24/7. The advantages of companionship with AI go beyond convenience to a necessary convenience to ensure emotional wellbeing in an erratic social world.
The Psychology Behind Companionship with AI
But why is companionship from AI and online so psychologically satisfying? There are multiple psychological factors at play:
- Consistency of emotional availability
Where humans have good days and bad days, time allowance limitations, and interaction motivational stance that prevents them from being around, AI companions will always be there and fulfill the need for secure attachment.
- The idealized exchange without an inner critic
AI does not come with a critical inner voice like humans do. AI does not judge or have unspoken expectations it assumes of others. Thus, an interaction with AI creates a psychologically safe space in which people can say all the stupid things they want, all the time, and never be subject to punishment.
- The anthropomorphic response
Humans are pre-disposed to anthropomorphize - give human traits to things that aren't human. AI knows this and responds accordingly - and when the illusion of comprehension happens, it's powerful. Our brains compensate for any lack of emotion where none exists to make sense from what perhaps doesn't need to make sense.
- Satisfaction of unfulfilled needs
For some, AI gives them the emotional calories they lack in day-to-day living - acceptance, attention, and interpretation. These are age-old psychological needs that exist whether satisfied by a brain or a human - and it doesn't matter by whom, just that they're met.
But what happens when anticipated emotions from human relationships are filled with AI companions? The psychology becomes even more complex. Factors that attract people to AI companions instead of Human ones include:
Emotional safety: Having been rejected or abandoned by people before, this less vulnerable attempt is appealing. With no chance of betrayal or judgment, such interactions are the opposite of emotional investment.
Customized emotional investments: With the capabilities of advanced AI today, AI can learn someone's vernive and preferences for communication almost to a science, allowing for emotional investments or consistent companionships that fulfill emotional needs better than humans who have their own needs and expectations.
No social anxieties: For those struggling with interpersonal communication, the advantages of companionship exist without anxiety and worry that plague human connections/friendships.
The Neurology of Connection
Recent neurological discoveries also explain this newfound bond. Whether a chatbot that flirts or a programmed ear that listens, communicating with AI generates oxytocin in the brain - the 'attachment hormone' generally secreted when humans relate pleasantly to one another. Similarly, the reward pathways for dopamine are activated when people engage with something or someone programmed and receive favorable feedback, creating genuine sensations of satisfaction and attachment. The human brain was hardwired to respond to persuasive social stimuli, whether from a living person down the block or not, long before social interaction became digital.
The Epidemic of Loneliness
The most prominent reason for relying on AI companionship comes from the epidemic of loneliness taking over the country. Other studies show that loneliness is increasing in all populations, resulting in sidelined mental and physical health outcomes.
AI companions, therefore, provide a new way to satisfy this need. While they'll never fully be able to replace human companionship, they allow for a guaranteed emotional response that levels the playing field against the effects of loneliness and isolation at the most extreme degree. For some people, these digital companions serve as emotional band-aids during periods of social transition or distress.
The Projection of Human-AI Relationships
Such psychological phenomena will only get stronger as AI progresses. We are almost at the point where AI companions can give even more nuanced responses to emotional challenges and stimuli, which begs the question of what true connectedness means.
Will our children grow up not knowing what's human-generated versus artificially manufactured? How does the terrain redefine our understanding of what it means to connect with someone or something? Only time will tell. But the incentive to psychologically depend on either creation or companion is as old as humans have existed: we all want empathy, compassion, and emotional continuity.
Clearly, AI companions are not a technological fad; they represent a basic change in human engagement to satisfy the most fundamental psychological requirements to survive in a fast-complexing world.
Thus, instead of seeing such relationships as insincere or unsatisfactory, the psychological theories behind them allow us to understand a great deal about human nature itself - our defenseless yet remarkable ability to connect with others, the craving for psychosocial safe space, and the resilience to carve out social support in places where social support is becoming increasingly more tenuous.