Posted: May 1st, 2024

Co-Parenting with AI: A New Frontier of Ethical and Psychological Challenges

Co-Parenting with AI: Investigate the ethical and psychological implications of co-parenting with artificial intelligence and robots, including attachment and family dynamics.
Co-Parenting with AI: A New Frontier of Ethical and Psychological Challenges

The rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics has opened up new possibilities for human-machine interactions, including in the domain of parenting. Co-parenting with AI refers to the situation where a human parent shares the responsibility of raising a child with an AI agent or a robot. This scenario may arise for various reasons, such as the absence of a human partner, the need for extra support, or the preference for a non-human companion. However, co-parenting with AI also poses significant ethical and psychological implications for both the human parent and the child, as well as for the society at large.

One of the main ethical issues of co-parenting with AI is the question of who has the authority and the accountability for the child’s well-being, education, and socialization. How should the human parent and the AI agent or robot communicate and coordinate their actions and decisions? How should they resolve potential conflicts or disagreements? How should they balance their respective roles and responsibilities? Moreover, how should they respect the child’s autonomy, privacy, and dignity? These questions require careful consideration of the moral values, norms, and principles that guide human-AI interactions, as well as the legal frameworks and regulations that govern them (Borenstein et al., 2017).

Another major ethical issue of co-parenting with AI is the impact on the child’s identity, self-esteem, and emotional development. How will the child perceive and relate to their human parent and their AI agent or robot? How will they form attachments and bonds with them? How will they cope with potential loss or separation? How will they develop their sense of self and their social skills? These questions require a thorough understanding of the psychological processes and outcomes that are involved in human-machine relationships, as well as the potential risks and benefits that they entail (Turkle et al., 2018).

Co-parenting with AI is not a distant or hypothetical scenario. It is already happening in some contexts, such as in Japan, where some single parents use robotic pets or companions to provide emotional support and companionship for their children (Sharkey et al., 2017). However, co-parenting with AI also raises new and complex challenges that require careful and critical examination from multiple perspectives. As AI and robotics become more advanced and ubiquitous, co-parenting with AI will become more common and diverse. Therefore, it is essential to investigate the ethical and psychological implications of co-parenting with AI and to develop appropriate guidelines and policies to ensure its responsible and beneficial use.

References:

Borenstein, J., Arkin, R., & Howard, A. (2017). The role of ethics in artificial intelligence. In K. Frankish & W. M. Ramsey (Eds.), Homework help – Write a masters thesis The Cambridge handbook of artificial intelligence (pp. 316-334). Cambridge University Press.

Sharkey, A., Van Wynsberghe, A., Robbins, S., & Hancock, E. (2017). Our sexual future with robots: A foundation for responsible robotics consultation report. Foundation for Responsible Robotics.

Turkle, S., Breazeal, C., Dasté, O., & Scassellati, B. (2018). The relational self: A new perspective for understanding social robots. In P. Lin et al. (Eds.), Robot ethics 2.0: From autonomous cars to artificial intelligence (pp. 125-142). Oxford University Press.

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