3~6岁幼儿对智能语音助手在不同领域的知识性信任

The epistemic trust of 3-to 6-year-olds in digital voice assistants in various domains

基于双信息源实验范式,考察3~6岁幼儿和成人对智能语音助手(Digital Voice Assistants,DVAs)的知识性信任,并验证准确性在其信任中的作用。实验1,操纵了信息源类型(DVAs vs人类)和知识领域(自然vs社会)。结果显示,与人类相比,幼儿和成人对DVAs的知识性信任更强。对DVAs的信任程度,6岁幼儿高于4、5岁幼儿,成人高于幼儿。与社会领域相比,幼儿和成人均更倾向于询问DVAs自然领域的问题。基于实验1,实验2操纵了两种信息源提供证言的准确性条件,结果发现,当DVAs不准确时,幼儿和成人均不再信任其证言,且3岁幼儿对准确性的敏感性较低。研究结果表明,信息源类型、知识领域和证言准确性都会影响幼儿的知识性信任,准确性是评估DVAs可靠性的重要标准。

A new generation of interactive models,called digital voice assistants(DVAs),can respond to young children's speech requests automatically and interact with them by voice.Research on the development of young children's epistemic trust in DVAs is scarce.Previous research has concentrated on the development and influencing factors of young children's epistemic trust in human informants or traditional electronic media(e.g.,computers,webpages,internet).The semisocial nature of these devices determines the specific theoretical and practical value of investigating young children's epistemic trust in DVAs.Based on this,the purpose of the current study was to investigate the epistemic trust of young children(aged 3-6)and adults in DVAs in various domains and to confirm the significance of accuracy in their trust.The paradigm of dual-informant sources was employed in both experiments.A sample size of 88 children was required for an effect size of w=0.30,1-β=0.8,α=0.05,according to G*Power 3.1.In Experiment 1,30 adults and 90 children aged 4-6 were given testimony from distinct information sources(DVAs vs.humans)in either the natural or social domain to investigate the children's willingness to ask questions,explicit trust judgments,and final endorsements.Whereas the natural domain involved a task to label novel things,the social domain involved inquiry into social customs.The accuracy of the informants was manipulated in Experiment 2,which was based on Experiment 1,and 90 children aged 3-5 and 30 adults were exposed to various informants.The research participants were asked questions about their willingness to ask,explicit trust judgments,and final endorsements.The results of Experiment 1 showed that the children preferred to ask the DVAs questions about the natural domain rather than the social domain,with the DVAs being preferred overall.Moreover,the 6-year-old children preferred the DVAs as the information source more than the 4-to 5-year-old children.The adults were more likely to trust the DVAs than the young children.The results of Experiment 2 revealed that the children of all ages and adults were more likely to accept correct informant testimony in both the natural and social domains.In other words,the children were more likely to use the current accuracy of informants as a cue to assess and decide which informant to trust,and when the DVAs lost their accuracy,the children's preference disappeared along with their intellectual trust.The preference for accurate informants was more obvious in the adults and 4-to 5-year-olds than in the 3-year-olds,with the 3-year-olds being less sensitive to accuracy.Accuracy was an essential indicator of the DVAs'dependability.Our study is the first to investigate the development of epistemic trust in DVAs among children aged 3-6 in China.The results show that children can use DVAs as a source of information and knowledge.Young children become more likely to believe the testimonies of DVAs as they grow older.Children are more likely to trust DVAs in the natural domain than in the social domain.Furthermore,young children are more likely to accept the testimony of reliable informants.The results of this study may contribute to our understanding of the usability and utility of human interaction with technological systems and offer suggestions for the use of DVAs in homes and classrooms to support early learning.