Smartphones as Social Actors? Social dispositional factors in assessing anthropomorphism

Abstract Smartphones are prominently personalized and personified in our society. Existing Computers as Social Actors (CASA) studies about anthropomorphism and social interactions have focused on how to identify and elicit positive anthropomorphic effects but have seldom addressed motivations and dispositional factors of the user. Through an online survey that incorporates validated social psychological scales, this study provides empirical evidence that smartphone users’ social disposition, including factors of chronic loneliness, attachment style, and cultural orientation, is associated with their acceptance and awareness of anthropomorphism. The findings corroborate and add to the theory of sociality determinant of anthropomorphism, the computing technology continuum of perspective, and the CASA paradigm.