Facilitating Collaborative Consensus Building in Web-based Discussion through Collective Task-Based Roles: A Case Study
Sofia Sahab, Jawad Ahmad Haqbeen, Takayuki Itō · IIAI Letters on Informatics and Interdisciplinary Research · 2023
Effective group decision-making relies on consensus processes, which often involve various models. However, when applied to web-based social systems as communication networks, these processes reveal multifaceted challenges. These challenges encompass the management of information overload, the dynamics of asynchronous discussions, and the intricacies of coordinating participants within the same time zone. To address these issues comprehensively, we employ a multifaceted approach. This approach involves the automation of consensus processes through AI assistance, along with human-human and human-AI collaboration mechanisms. In light of this, we aim to explore approaches that not only streamline consensus building but also facilitate stakeholder interactions for meaningful problem-solving. Our investigation centers on collaborative consensus building through task-based roles assigned to human agents, complemented by conversational AI agent support. Diverging from traditional role-playing, we assign participants specific tasks such as summarizing discussions and contributing to policy sections. Our overarching objective is to enhance the collaborative consensus-building process within web-based discussions. Our research is deeply rooted in the exploration of how humans interact and collaborate on digital platforms, with a special focus on Human-AI collaboration tasks. We present a web-based case study where participants collectively craft policy proposals for informal settlement upgrades. Remarkably, 20 out of 24 groups, each consisting of four participants, successfully presented their proposals. Post-experiment survey results further indicate a high level of participant satisfaction with the process, the proposals, and teamwork. This study holds significant implications for the development of consensus-building support systems, offering varying degrees of agency in collaborative tasks.