The design and discursive construction of a ‘speaking’ vacuum cleaning robot for assistive purposes:  Findings on communication ideologies from a current research and development project

Sabine Lehner

doi:10.62408/ai-ling.v2i1.16

Authors

Sabine Lehner St. Pölten University of Applied Sciences https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2953-4183

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.62408/ai-ling.v2i1.16

Keywords:

digital voice assistant, communication ideologies, human-machine communication, Alexa, anthropomorphization, assistive technologies

Abstract

This sociolinguistically informed study deals with the design and discursive construction of a voice assistant (Amazon’s Alexa) in a project that develops a vacuum cleaning robot (‘Smart Companion’) capable of detecting a fallen person and providing assistance for older people in case of an emergency. The paper investigates sociotechnical ensembles along the co-constitutive lines of users, the technical device, and society, with communication ideologies (e.g., assumptions about the communicative nature of technical devices) emerging from and influencing this complex triad. The qualitative analysis of interactional data and interviews suggests that communication ideologies materialize in the way how participants interact with Alexa, by drawing on human-human communication strategies and adapting their linguistic behavior if interactional problems occur. Communication ideologies include assumptions about the ontology, (linguistic) agency, the purpose of the voice assistant / robot, and the relationship between the user and the voice assistant / the robot. Discursive constructions include anthropomorphization and hybrid, partly hesitant ontological categorizations, combining both human and non-human qualities. Participants show an interest in the Smart Companion, but do not yet consider themselves as being in need of assistive technologies like the Smart Companion, reiterating the importance of taking the users, their self-image and discourses into account.

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The design and discursive construction of a ‘speaking’ vacuum cleaning robot for assistive purposes

Findings on communication ideologies from a current research and development project

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