Finding comfort in digital companions: University teachers’ lived experiences using the Xiaopa AI companion toy for workplace stress management
Paper Details
Finding comfort in digital companions: University teachers’ lived experiences using the Xiaopa AI companion toy for workplace stress management
Abstract
This phenomenological study explored how university teachers in Western Samar, Philippines used Xiaopa, a commercially available AI companion toy, to manage workplace stress in challenging academic environments. Six purposively selected participants, two doctorate-holding instructors and four master’s-level teachers drawn from different academic programs at a local state university, participated in in-depth, semi-structured interviews and maintained reflective journals over an eight-week data collection period. Interpretative phenomenological analysis yielded three major themes: (1) constructing safe spaces for unfiltered expression, wherein participants found judgment-free outlets for processing emotions that could not be safely disclosed to colleagues or administrators; (2) reclaiming emotional balance through accessible support, illustrating how Xiaopa delivered immediate relief during high-stress episodes when conventional support structures were unavailable or perceived as inadequate; and (3) navigating tensions between digital comfort and human connection, revealing participants’ ambivalence about technological dependence, data privacy, and the prospect of substituting Xiaopa interactions for authentic relationships. Participants engaged with Xiaopa most intensively during periods of administrative pressure, workload overload, and professional isolation, consistently citing around-the-clock availability as a decisive advantage over campus counseling and peer support. While the findings affirm the practical value of Xiaopa as a stress management tool in resource-constrained educational settings, participants maintained that it should complement, not displace, institutional support systems and genuine human relationships. The study contributes to emerging discourse on AI-mediated coping in higher education and offers implications for faculty welfare policy in Philippine state universities.
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