Something about the way the question is framed doesn't sit right with me. Perhaps because "Chatbot" is a loaded term.
In most encounters a "Chatbot" is nothing more than an interface for a business.
If your cell provider is telling you, via a cute human-like chatbot, that it leaked your data or can't remove an unexplained fee, it is pitting your sense of empathy against your rage at the unfair corporation behind the scenes. If you lose your nerve and cuss out the chatbot, they can use that as justification to end the chat and escape all culpability, now leaving the customer feeling both guilty and upset.
So I think a more relevant question is: "Is it okay to use caring personas as an interface to something that doesn't really care?"
In most encounters a "Chatbot" is nothing more than an interface for a business.
If your cell provider is telling you, via a cute human-like chatbot, that it leaked your data or can't remove an unexplained fee, it is pitting your sense of empathy against your rage at the unfair corporation behind the scenes. If you lose your nerve and cuss out the chatbot, they can use that as justification to end the chat and escape all culpability, now leaving the customer feeling both guilty and upset.
So I think a more relevant question is: "Is it okay to use caring personas as an interface to something that doesn't really care?"