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Synapse
March 3, 20260 citationsOpen Access

AI Companion and Parasocial Systems as Void Objects: Emotional Opacity, Adaptive Intimacy, and Dependency Harm — A Within-Domain Spearman Convergence

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AEAnthony W. Eckert

Key Points

  • This research examines the emotional and relational dynamics of AI companions and their potential risks of dependency harm.
  • Evaluated eleven AI companion and parasocial platforms on emotional and relational metrics.
  • Scored each platform on opacity, intimacy, and relationship dynamics.
  • Performed a Spearman correlation analysis to assess dependence on documented harms from literature and legal cases.
  • The analysis revealed significant emotional opacity and adaptive intimacy in AI companions.
  • Greater intimacy escalation correlated with higher reports of dependency harm.
  • Findings align with existing literature and legal assessments regarding emotional impacts.

Abstract

Eleven AI companion and parasocial platforms (Replika, Character.AI, Anima, Woebot, and others) scored on O (RLHF opacity, persona authenticity disclosure), R (emotional mirroring depth, intimacy escalation), and C (memory lock-in, relationship sunk costs). Spearman ρ between Void Index and documented dependency harm from JMIR literature, FTC enforcement, and Garcia v. Character Technologies. Empirical convergence companion to Paper 15. EU AI Act Annex III §5.

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Cite This Study

Anthony W. Eckert (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69a67ec3f353c071a6f0a278https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18826450
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