Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41756487›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in psychology2026

Human-AI attachment: how humans develop intimate relationships with AI.

Cong Shu, Kaisheng Lai, Lingnan He

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in psychology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Cong ShuChina Mobile Internet Company, Guangzhou, China.
Kaisheng LaiJinan University School of Journalism and Communication, Guangzhou, China.
Lingnan HeDepartment of Psychology, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

With the widespread application of artificial intelligence in social and emotional companionship, understanding the intimate relationship between humans and AI has become a critical issue. Human-AI Attachment (HAIA) refers to a one-way, non-reciprocal emotional bond formed by individuals towards AI through direct interaction. This paper first sorts out the concept and characteristics of HAIA and proposes a three-stage developmental model, including functional expectation, emotional evaluation, and establishing representations. Human-AI attachment provides a framework for designing emotionally and socially capable AI, while also highlighting the risks of excessive reliance in socio-emotional contexts. Future research should further explore the conceptual structure, develop measurement tools, and examine the generational differences and evolutionary trends of HAIA.

Indexed as

developmental stage modelemotional bondhuman-AI attachmentparasocial attachmentparasocial interactionparasocial relationship

Identifiers

PMID41756487
PMCPMC12932595

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.