What does this research mean for the field?

Adults with mild-to-moderate intellectual disability experience conversational AI as a personalized cognitive support tool that aids in organizing thoughts and preparing for everyday decisions, complementing rather than replacing human support. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.NOVEL_FINDING. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.ESTABLISHES_NEW_DIRECTION.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To investigate how adults with mild-to-moderate intellectual disability experience conversational artificial intelligence as an aid for everyday decision-making and cognitive support.

September 10, 2026Journal of Intellectual Disability Research

Conversational AI as Personalised Cognitive Support: Adults With Intellectual Disability's Experiences of Everyday Decision‐Making

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Authors

IÁIzaskun Álvarez‐AguadoMillennium Institute VCVanessa Vega CórdovaPontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso MRMiguel Roselló‐PeñalozaUniversity of the Americas

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Implication

Qualitative study reveals conversational AI helps organize thoughts and build decision-making confidence in adults with intellectual disability, highlighting the need for user-controlled tools.

Key Points

To investigate how adults with mild-to-moderate intellectual disability experience conversational artificial intelligence as an aid for everyday decision-making and cognitive support.
Qualitative interpretivist study conducted with N=46 adults with mild-to-moderate intellectual disability recruited through six community organizations in Chile.
Participants engaged with a conversational AI platform over a 4-week period before participating in semistructured interviews analyzed via reflexive thematic analysis.
Participants reported conversational AI supported comprehension through dialogue and helped organize thoughts while preserving individual decision ownership.
Users viewed AI as a complement to human support networks rather than a replacement, noting it fostered reflection and confidence prior to finalizing decisions.
The technology was perceived as legitimate and useful only when designed to be fully accessible, personalized, and under user control.

Cite This Study

Álvarez‐Aguado et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6aa27b2658559d80afc741ff https://doi.org/10.1111/jir.70171

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Implication

Qualitative study reveals conversational AI helps organize thoughts and build decision-making confidence in adults with intellectual disability, highlighting the need for user-controlled tools.

Conversational AI as Personalised Cognitive Support: Adults With Intellectual Disability's Experiences of Everyday Decision‐Making

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

Conversational AI as Personalised Cognitive Support: Adults With Intellectual Disability's Experiences of Everyday Decision‐Making

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

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