On November 10, Dr. Franziska Poszler was invited to give a guest lecture entitled “AI Chatbots as Moral Dialog Partners” at Ingolstadt University of Applied Sciences (THI) within the eTHIcs Lecture Series. The lecture series is organized under the umbrella of the eTHIcs Digitalization College at AImotion Bavaria and THI.
In her lecture session, Dr. Poszler provided a brief introduction to moral psychology, covering steps and approaches to ethical decision-making, moral development and the phenomenon of moral deskilling. She then connected these theories to AI chatbots, exploring the impact of AI systems on human ethical decision-making. She discussed different roles AI can take in influencing moral behavior (such as role model, advisor, partner and delegate), examined design features of AI chatbots and their corresponding impacts and presented empirical studies illustrating positive and negative outcomes of utilizing AI chatbots of human-AI interaction in ethical decision-making contexts.
Dr. Poszler also showcased a short video excerpt of the The Third Voice theater performance, the artistic output of the MoralPLai project. The video depicted a court scene of the play in which various witnesses testified about how AI chatbots are designed, whose values are embedded and how these systems may influence human decision-making. It was intended as an artistic case study and interactive exercise to prompt discussion about potential risks – including feedback loops, echo chamber effects, manipulation of content filters, liability concerns, the alignment problem and others.
THI focuses on technology and economics, combining practice-oriented teaching with strong applied research. Its research and teaching emphasize technological innovation in areas such as artificial intelligence, digital transformation and innovative mobility, positioning the THI as a leading institution for applied technology and future-oriented solutions in Germany. Given that the THI emphasizes social responsibility, sustainability and current societal challenges in its engineering programs, the university offers an eTHIcs Lecture Series. In this lecture series, scientists at THI and beyond explore key issues in technology ethics, asking moral questions about how we use and design technology.
Read more about the MoralPLai project here.
Learn more about the eTHIcs Digitalization College here.
