Discussing human values in digital immortality: towards a value-oriented perspective

Abstract

Intense social media interaction, wearable devices, mobile applications, and pervasive use of sensors have created a personal information ecosystem for gathering traces of individual behavior. These traces are the digital legacy individuals build all through their lives. Advances in artificial intelligence have fed our dream to build artificial agents trained with these digital traces to behave similarly to a deceased person, and individuals are facing the possibility of immortalizing their ideas, reasoning and behavior. Are people prepared for that? Are people willing to do that? How do people perceive the possibility of letting digital avatars take care of their digital legacy? This paper sheds light on these questions by discussing users’ perceptions towards digital immortality in a focus group analysis with 8 participants. Our findings suggest some key human values must be addressed. These findings can serve as preliminary thoughts to inform system design, from the very early stage of development, that preserve the digital legacy while respecting the human needs and values concerning the delicate emotional moment that death provides. This qualitative research analyzes the data, and based on the insights learned, proposes important considerations for future developments in this area.

Deathbots. Discussing the use of Artificial Intelligence in grief / Deathbots. Debatiendo el uso de la Inteligencia Artificial en el duelo

“…Esta sensación de conexión es relativamente habitual manifestándose en forma de diálogos imaginarios con los seres fallecidos, por ejemplo, al visitar su tumba, al escribir mensajes en su memorial online o al imaginarnos sus reacciones ante distintos acontecimientos o acciones de nuestra vida (Stroebe et al, 1996). Partiendo de este planteamiento, recientes estudios han reportado beneficios en el afrontamiento de la pérdida derivados del uso de los deathbots (Galvão et al, 2021;Xygkou et al, 2023). Concretamente, el uso de estos artefactos serviría como una ayuda inicial para afrontar los primeros momentos del duelo al permitirnos regular nuestras emociones mediante ciertas prácticas conversacionales con una 'voz' conocida dispuesta a escucharnos sin juzgarnos (Krueger & Osler, 2022;Trothen, 2022).…”

“…En tanto nueva tanatecnología (Sofka, 1997)o tecnología aplicada al duelo -todavía en fase inicial de desarrollo, los deathbots son artefactos que plantean muchos interrogantes. Mientras que algunos autores han abordado las posibles implicaciones éticas y psicológicas de esta nueva tecnología (Buben, 2015;Öhman & Floridi, 2018;Savin-Baden, 2022;Stokes, 2021), muy pocos trabajos han abordado empíricamente estas cuestiones (Galvão et al, 2021;Xygkou et al, 2023). Basándonos en trabajos previos (Jiménez-Alonso & Brescó, 2022aBrescó, , 2023aBrescó, , 2023bBrescó, , 2023c) y en la literatura existente sobre este tema, el presente artículo aborda algunas de las cuestiones que suscitan mayor debate en los estudios recientes, como el posible efecto de ilusión de realidad que pueda generar esta tecnología, su impacto en la autonomía del doliente, la individualización del duelo, las implicaciones éticas en relación con el fallecido o los potenciales usos terapéuticos de la herramienta.…”

“…This sense of connection is relatively common, taking the form of imagined dialogues with the deceased, for example, by visiting their grave, writing messages on their online memorial or imagining their reactions to various events or actions in our lives (Stroebe et al, 1996). Based on this approach, recent studies have reported benefits in using deathbots to cope with loss (Galvão et al, 2021;Xygkou et al, 2023). Specifically, the use of these artefacts would appear to serve as an initial aid in coping with early grief by allowing us to regulate our emotions through conversational practices with a familiar 'voice' willing to listen to us without judgement (Krueger & Osler, 2022;Trothen, 2022).…”

“…As a new thanatechnology (Sofka, 1997) — or technology applied to grief — still in its early stages, deathbots are artefacts that raise many questions. While some authors have addressed the possible ethical and psychological implications of this new technology (Buben, 2015; Öhman & Floridi, 2018; Savin-Baden, 2022; Stokes, 2021), very few works have empirically addressed these questions (Galvão et al, 2021; Xygkou et al, 2023). Based on previous work (Jiménez-Alonso & Brescó, 2022a, 2023a, 2023b, 2023c) and existing literature on this topic, this article addresses some of the most heavily debated issues in recent studies, such as the illusion of reality effect that this technology may generate, its possible impact on the autonomy of the bereaved, the individualization of grief, the ethical implications for the deceased and the potential therapeutic uses of the tool.…”

Information science and the inevitable: A literature review at the intersection of death and information management: An Annual Review of Information Science and Technology (ARIST) paper

“…For example, authors have conceptualized four modes of digital afterlives and described their interaction with technology (Fordyce et al, 2021): through a surrogate who represents/post on their behalf; through relatively simple automation in the form of scheduled posts/messages; through algorithms that respond to posts or otherwise create content that personifies the deceased; and through AI. Complementary research examines the transformation of identity through the creation and use of avatars in digital immortality (Galvão et al, 2021) and follows earlier work on digital biographies or “digital ghosts” of the deceased, which encompass digital remains as well as beliefs and values (Steinhart, 2007). Such studies prompt reflection on identity, ethics, and the enduring impact of information, technology, and life after death.…”