Conversational agents as moderators for workplace stress
With the advancement of digital work environments, it is necessary to ensure the well-being of employees. Well-being specifically refers to meeting the needs of employees (e.g., joy, stress reduction, or a sense of belonging). These needs sometimes conflict with the needs of the company, resulting in the digital space being designed to achieve company goals rather than individual ones.
One way to promote both productivity and employee well-being is through stress-reducing interventions and workplace motivation. Common examples include sports activities during breaks and recreational facilities in break rooms (e.g., foosball tables). However, these are difficult to translate to the digital space, requiring new approaches.
This function could be fulfilled by voice-based assistants like chatbots. They are unconsciously perceived by users as social interaction partners and can take on the role of a coworker or supervisor and provide motivation and stress reduction. However, the perception of a social partner could also be an additional source of stress, as employees may feel monitored or observed.
This project aims to explore the perception of a chatbot as a companion in a crowd working environment. The influence of various design elements (e.g., human-like appearance, identity, and self-reference) on employee stress and motivation will be examined. The goal is to evaluate the suitability of chatbots as stress-reducing measures in the digital workspace and identify which design elements enable this effect.
Partners:
Prof. Millad Mirbabaie (Universität Paderborn)
Dr. Wekenborg (TU Dresden Biopsychology)
Project duration: 08/2022 – 08/2023
Financial support provided by: Dr. Hans Riegel-Stiftung
Methods: Eye-Tracking, ECG & EEG
© Michael Kretzschmar
Research Associate
NameDr. R. Stefan Greulich
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