Let’s Talk About Death: Existential Conversations with Chatbots

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Many people prefer not to think about their own death, let alone talk about it. This contributes to fear of death and reduces the acceptance of its inevitability. We hypothesized that talking about one’s own death with a specially designed chatbot reduces fear of death and strengthens the confidence to discuss the topic further with loved ones. Participants (N=100) talked with the chatbot for an average of 25 minutes. It offered conversations about planning for one's own death, end-of-life preferences, and hopes for the afterlife. We measured participants’ fear and acceptance of death (DAP-R questionnaire) and readiness for end-of-life conversation (REOLC questionnaire) before and after the chat. Overall, attitudes toward death improved and fear decreased, while readiness for end-of-life conversations increased. Bigger changes in attitude corresponded with longer, more reflective responses in the conversations, commitment to plans, finding meaning in death, and some notion of legacy or afterlife.