“Please tell me everything you can remember about what happened.
Try to not leave anything out, even if it seems trivial.
I have as much time as you need.”
Although this dialogue may sound like something straight out of a police interview, these are prompts from a computer programme designed to combat discrimination and harassment at work.
It’s the voice of a chatbot called Spot. Launched in February, the free-to-use chatbot, accessed through a website, records typed responses to a series of questions. These can then be collated to create a report detailing sexual harassment or discrimination at work. If someone tells a story of sexual harassment by her boss, for example, the bot might probe for more precise details: “Thank you for telling me about that. Please provide specifics about the month, week, day, or time this happened.”
It is hoped this rather clinical approach could remove some of the stigma associated with making a formal complaint – and could hopefully lead to a safer, more open environment for all employees.
How it works?
For now, any individual can generate a report on Spot’s website (this could be done from a home computer if you don’t want your employer to know).
Chatbots that use artificial intelligence are designed to provide a judgement-free service that doesn’t rush or fluster users.
Depending on how many details the user can remember about the incident, who was there, how he or she felt, if there was any other evidence (like screenshots of inappropriate messages, etc.), the chat could take a few minutes – or as long as the user needs. If the user mentions a witness, for example, it also encourages them to ask that witness to create a report as well.
At the end of the discussion, users can choose to download a timestamped PDF with an organised transcript of their conversation and then choose whether to use it to raise a complaint at their company or not.
The true scale of harassment at work is relatively unknown but a recent survey of more than 2000 people found half the women polled had experienced it at some level. It is thought that the majority of workplace harassment and discrimination still goes unreported.
