Should government chatbots behave like civil servants? The effect of chatbot identity characteristics on citizen experience

Government chatbots are naturally imparted the identity of civil service agents, because they replace human civil servants in providing services on the frontline. However, little is known about whether government chatbots should present key characteristics consistent with their identity. Based on Computers Are Social Actors (CASA) theory and the stereotype content model (SCM), this study explored the effect of various identity characteristics on citizens' experiences in Chinese government chatbots. Valid data were obtained from 705 respondents and analysed using structural equation model, we found that manners, proactivity, conscientiousness, fairness, and professionalisation significantly influence the citizens' experiences, and that task-oriented language style has a negative effect. These effects are partly mediated by perceptions of warmth and competence. These findings contribute theoretically to the literature on chatbot identity and provide implications for incorporating chatbots into the design of e-government context.