Flourishing with Moral Emotions Through Conversational Agents

Abstract

This chapter concerns how artificial agents can be used to bolster moral emotions like compassion that are linked to well-being. While technology-based interventions for well-being are plentiful, e.g., wellness apps, two critical components for flourishing in the twenty-first century are currently overlooked: (1) promoting moral emotions, e.g., gratitude, that relies on complex emotional experiences rather than simple negative or positive affect, and (2) using conversational agents, e.g., chatbots, rather than other technological interventions, e.g., mobile apps, which reframes well-being interventions as conversations. We look into gratitude and compassion as specific moral emotions that can be fostered by talking with technology rather than clicking through technology. This extends our relations of care to include artificial agents, in which we explore flourishing along with (not despite) technology in a new light.