Sometimes fictional characters can influence us more than real people, and make us better people.
Researchers at the University of Washington have developed an innovative app called "Self-Talk with Superhero Zip," which features an audio chatbot aimed at nurturing self-awareness and also emotional management skills in children.
Let's find out more!
A new app for children
The app utilizes interactive lessons with a superhero character named Zip to guide pairs of siblings through exercises that encourage positive self-talk.
After engaging with the app for a week, most children demonstrated an understanding of supportive self-talk and successfully applied it in their daily lives.
The results of the experiment
The researchers focused on the potential benefits of using chatbots to foster socioemotional skills in kids, as positive self-talk has been linked to various advantages, such as improved sports performance, better self-esteem, and even reduced risk of anxiety and depression.
They aimed to create a secure and enjoyable environment for children to practice these skills without compromising their privacy.
While the new app is still in the prototype stage and not publicly available yet, the team envisions making it accessible to more people later.
They are exploring the integration of large language models like ChatGPT into the system and plan to work together with content creators to incorporate existing socioemotional learning materials into the app, aiming for more effective interventions.
