CivicBots xe2x80x93 Chatbots for Supporting Youth in Societal Participation Supporting young people to participate in societal development is an important factor in achieving sustainable future. Digital solutions can be designed to help youth participate in civic activities, such as city planning and legislation. To this end, we are using humancentered approach to study how digital tools can help youth discuss their ideas on various societal issues. Chatbots are conversational agents that have potential to trigger and support thought processes, as well as online activities. In this context, we are exploring how chatbots xe2x80x93 which we call CivicBots xe2x80x93 can be used to support youth (16xe2x80x9327 years) in societal participation. We created three scenarios for CivicBots and evaluated them with the youth in an online survey (N  54). Positive perceptions of the youth concerning CivicBots suggest that CivicBots can advance equality and they may be able to reach youth better than a real person. On the negative side, CivicBots may cause unpleasant interactions by their overproactive behaviour, and trustworthiness is affected by fears that the bot does not respect userxe2x80x99s privacy, or that it provides biased or limited information about societally important issues.

Exploring Age Differences in Motivations for and Acceptance of Chatbot Communication in a Customer Service Context This qualitative interview study explores age differences in perceptions of chatbot communication in a customer service context. Socioemotional selectivity theory and research into technology acceptance suggest that older adults may differ from younger adults in motivations to use chatbots, and in perceived complexity and security of this chatbot communication. The indepth interviews with older adults (54xe2x80x9381 years; N  7) and younger adults (19xe2x80x9330 years; N  7) revealed that both groups were aligned in their prime motivation: They used chatbots to get their (simple) customer queries answered in a fast and convenient manner. However, they seemed to differ in their need for additional human contact. In both age groups, there were participants for whom it was easy to communicate with chatbots, and the two groups were united in their frustrations when the chatbot did not understand and answer their queries. They were aligned as well in the difficulty they experienced in assessing the security of the chatbot. The two age groups may differ in the factors that contribute to perceived ease of use and perceived security. Directions for future research and implications for the implementation of chatbots for customer service are discussed.