Considering widespread resistance to COVID-19 preventive measures, the authors draw on hypocrisy induction theory to examine whether online chatbots can be used to induce hypocrisy and increase compliance with social distancing guidelines. The experiment demonstrates that when a chatbot induces hypocrisy by reminding participants that they have failed to comply with social distancing recommendations, they feel guilty about violating social norms. To reinstate confidence in their personal standards, they form favorable attitudes toward the chatbot ad and establish intentions to comply with recommendations. Interestingly, the persuasive power of hypocrisy induction differs depending on the level of anthropomorphism of the chatbot. When a humanlike chatbot reminds them of their hypocritical behavior, participants feel higher levels of guilt and act more desirably, but a machinelike chatbot is not effective for creating guilt or generating compliance.
Keywords: COVID-19; anthropomorphism; chatbots; guilt; hypocrisy induction.