Voice-controlled smart devices could have “long-term consequences on empathy, compassion and critical thinking” among children, researchers have said as they called for more studies to examine the impact on youngsters. There has been a rapid rise in such devices, including Google Home, Amazon Alexa and Apple’s Siri, which has prompted researchers to question whether there are psychological impacts on users.
Children can use these tools in a number of different ways, with examples given by researchers including acting as reading companions to improve reading skills and as conversation “partners” to help children improve their communication skills by challenging verbal mistakes.
But they said that the artificial intelligence driving the devices, coupled with the human-sounding voices, have attracted concerns about how they “may negatively affect children’s cognitive and social development”. In a new opinion piece, published in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood, academics said the concerns on the impacts of children include “inappropriate responses”, “impeding social development” and “hindering learning opportunities”.
