The Use of Gendered Chatbots in Nigeria: Critical Perspectives

Abstract

AbstractIn a bid to improve service delivery and efficiency in Nigeria, the use of conversational agents such as chatbots capable of providing round the clock responses is growing. This is gaining more traction in the financial sector, particularly in fintechs where there have been significant improvements in the last year. However, not enough research has been conducted on the impact of the gendering of these conversational agents. This is concerning, especially as findings from our research reveal that the majority of chatbots currently deployed in the country are deliberately gendered to appear female, reinforcing already existing gender stereotypes within African societies. With an increase in the deployment of these bots in many other sectors, it is crucial to evaluate the significance of the gendering of these bots to ascertain the effect on gender inequality in Nigeria.