Understanding Trust Formation in AI Chatbot Interactions among Generation Z Users

Chatbots are now a part of the digital customer care, but the issue of trust is the decisive factor in the usage of artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots. In this research, the authors focus on the aspects of development of trust in AI chatbot interactions in Generation Z consumers. Primary data were gathered by the means of structured questionnaire and were analysed by the use of SPSS. Internal consistency across constructs was confirmed by way of reliability testing, whereas exploratory factor analysis offered six trust-shaping factors, namely Customer Loyalty Value, Chatbot Service Competence, Chatbot Reliability, Chatbot Advice Credibility, Chatbot Service Experience, and Human-Like Language. The findings suggest that the functional (accuracy, speed, competence, reliability) and relational (personalisation, tone, perceived credibility, human-like communication) aspects play a crucial role in both trust and the further behavioural consequences, including further usage and loyalty intentions. It is worth noting that even one human-like linguistic signal had a positive influence on trust perception, which reflects the psychological significance of the talk naturalness. The findings not only give theoretical understanding of how trust is formed in the services mediated by AI but also provide practical recommendations to organisations who want to create trustful chatbot systems.