CASA: Computers Are Social Actors

People apply social rules to computers mindlessly — the response is automatic and below conscious awareness, not effortful anthropomorphism. Nass & Moon (2000) formalized this as the CASA (Computers Are Social Actors) framework: minimal social cues from a computer (using “I,” adopting a gendered voice, displaying a name) are sufficient to trigger social scripts in users. People are polite to computers, reciprocate self-disclosure, apply gender stereotypes, and treat computers as teammates — all while explicitly denying that they would do so.

The critical feature of CASA is that the social cues are minimal and coherent. The computer says “I” consistently, or uses a single gendered voice. The cues point in one direction, the social frame activates, and nothing contradicts it. This coherence is what allows the frame to stabilize. When social cues become rich but inconsistent — as with modern AI agents — CASA’s predictions about stable social framing may break down. See categorical-ambiguity-of-ai.