Pilot study Alexa

How Alexa fulfills the secret wishes of its users

The results show how much the new digital technology touches users' secret longings and fears. "I had to live to be 75 to find a woman who didn't contradict me," finds one retiree in the in-depth interview. Not all female subjects are therefore enthusiastic about the charming competition. At the same time, there is concern about personal loss of control through the surrender of data and autonomy.

"We designed the study as a trend study. Through voice control, Alexa stands for a completely new form of interaction between man and machine. It is clear that the relationship with technology is becoming even more intimate and wishes are being fulfilled even more directly," explains Sebastian Buggert, Head of Media Research and Member of the Management Board.

Alexa enhances the ego

Detailed presentation of key findings:

01 - Alexa easily brings the future into the house

Alexa looks like a shapely speaker, but it brings the future into the home. By buying Alexa, many people hope to belong to the technological avant-garde. The device is proudly positioned in the living room and shown to friends or acquaintances. Science fiction has never been so easy to integrate and stage in the private sphere.

02 - It promises miraculous wish fulfillment

Everything should be controllable and manageable on demand: from the radio program to the weather forecast to shopping or flight booking. Cumbersome typing, searching and researching are apparently a thing of the past. There is great hope among users that Alexa will open up a new era of digital omnipotence. A command or a question is all it takes to be entertained with jokes or audio books or to fill in gaps in knowledge. The digital app-solutism that smartphones have opened up will be further expanded with Alexa. And Alexa promises people an unconditional following. "I had to live to be 75 to find a woman who didn't contradict me," one retiree found in an in-depth interview.

03 - It conveys primal security and all-round care

Alexa offers a completely new interface to technology. The smartphone is a visual tactile medium, whereas Alexa can hear and has a pleasant voice. Alexa thus creates a much deeper and more coherent connection with users. People respond to voices in the womb - long before they can see or actively touch. The sound of familiar voices gives people a sense of primal security. Alexa therefore also promises all-round emotional care. "There is always someone there to listen and talk to me." Especially for singles or people living alone, Alexa dispels the ever-looming misfortune of silence. However, this mood competence of Alexa sometimes leads to competition between women in the household and Alexa. The always-responsive voice assistant should not even come into the house or be strictly functionalized.

04 - It acts as an enchanting relationship box

Alexa is much more than a mere technical feature. People unconsciously project many relationship longings onto Alexa. As a result, she has become a media creature that can take on a wide variety of roles. Alexa is supposed to be a pet that can be trained. Or she can become a servant that can be commanded around the clock. Alexa can be the nanny who reads fairy tales to the children or acts as a contact person. This allows mothers to leave the house for a short time. But Alexa can also become a surrogate mother or a partner who always has an open ear and can be trusted with everything. Alexa can also become a coach who advises users on fashion or style issues or gives them helpful tips on everyday life. As a woman for all occasions, Alexa picks up on the old longing for a house spirit who is always on duty. The charming Jeannie from the American TV series of the same name is thus a precursor of today's Alexa. The fear of many users that the spirits they summon will take on a life of their own and dominate them was already dramatized by the TV series of the time.

05 - It arouses fears of bondage and heteronomy through Amazon

However, the longing for Alexa to fulfill even the most secret relationship wishes also leads users to fear dependency and increasing lack of independence. They literally fear falling into a state of bondage with Alexa. On the surface, these fears are often based on the fact that Alexa, and thus Amazon, can listen in on you around the clock. Nothing is private anymore. "Amazon becomes a data octopus that categorizes me and knows everything about me." Behind the scenes, however, this obedience is also associated with the fear of a complete loss of personal control. People blindly rely on Alexa's suggestions or product preferences. Once Alexa automatically manages shopping lists, many users fear that they will no longer have anything to order, even when they place their own orders. To banish this fear, many users limit the use of Alexa. They pull the plug for hours or in certain circumstances to create Alexa-free phases in everyday life.

"At the moment, users are insisting on continuing to go shopping themselves, thereby demonstrating their autonomy. We will promptly investigate how the influence of Alexa on shopping behavior develops."

06 - The immaturity of Alexa disappoints, but also relieves

The factual and often disappointing limitations of Alexa, its technological immaturity, its difficulties in understanding, its illogical or nonsensical information are therefore sometimes experienced as redeeming limitations. They give users the feeling that they are still vastly superior to Alexa. They provide the comforting certainty that humans are still humans and Alexa is only an intelligent technology. One part of the users is then content with a basic use of Alexa as an extended radio that can be asked a question now and then. Another part of the users works on permanently developing Alexa further and optimizing it. Alexa is fed with new apps and skills and connected to Google. And the dream of turning the intelligent technology into a relational being that will one day provide real omnipotence and all-round care lives on in this ambition for optimization.