As a Psychology student I’ve always been curious about how we connect with machines on a human level. AI is becoming part of everyday life, but how people feel about using it — especially across different cultures — is still poorly understood. I’m particularly interested in whether AI that shows empathy can build trust and improve the user experience.
What I’ll be exploring
My research will focus on two questions:
• Do people from different cultural backgrounds respond differently to AI?
• Can artificial empathy (e.g., warmth or understanding in an AI response) increase trust and engagement?
To answer these, I’ll design an experiment comparing participants’ reactions across different cultural groups.
Why it matters to me
I’m passionate about ethical, inclusive technology. I want to understand how we can build AI that supports real human connection — rather than replacing or distancing it.
This project is also an opportunity to build my research skills, learn how to handle cross-cultural data, and contribute to a fast-evolving area of psychology and consumer behaviour.
Looking ahead
Over the summer, I’ll be:
• Reviewing literature on empathy, culture, and AI interaction
• Creating an experiment
• Analysing the results to spot patterns in trust, satisfaction, and emotional response
• Sharing findings that I hope will inform more human-centred AI design
Huge thanks to the Laidlaw Foundation, Rebecca Shaw, Matthew Penhaligon, and the University of Leeds for supporting this work, and to Professor Aristeidis Theotokis for this opportunity I can’t wait to get started!