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Are You Being Served?: Intervening With Power via Interactive Voice Response and Competing Modalities of Mediated Support Channels

Sat, May 27, 8:00 to 9:15, Hilton San Diego Bayfront, Floor: 2, Indigo Ballroom D

Abstract

In summer 2015, we conducted an exploratory study of how people in the United States use and respond to robot-like systems in order to achieve their needs through customer service interfaces. We conducted three focus groups sessions along with 50 in-depth interviews. We found that users believe interactive voice response technology deters them from pursuing further contact. Yet, for the most part, people were unwilling to give up on the goals that motivated their initial contact. Consequently, they had to innovate ways to communicate with robots that essentially serve as gatekeepers to their desired ends. These results have implications for communication theory and system design, especially since these systems will be increasingly presented to consumers as social media affordances evolve.

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