The relevance of R. D. Laing to the AI movement and to media ecology more generally: Projection and the feeling of being understood

Abstract

This article is a celebration of Laing, Phillipson and Lee’s Interpersonal Perception and a staunch critique of Levy’s Love and Sex with Robots . It explores how relationships with others mediate self-understanding and interpersonal interaction. Furthermore, by appropriating relevant insights from Laing and his colleagues and re-contextualizing them within a larger media ecological framework, the article seeks to reveal the deep challenges and complexities faced by those who would engage in ‘interpersonal relationships’ with ‘sociable robots’ and/or ‘artificial intelligences’.