Privacy and Safety Experiences and Concerns of U.S. Women Using Generative AI for Seeking Sexual and Reproductive Health Information

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Autori principali: Kaleva, Ina, Zhan, Xiao, Abu-Salma, Ruba, Such, Jose
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2026
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author Kaleva, Ina
Zhan, Xiao
Abu-Salma, Ruba
Such, Jose
author_facet Kaleva, Ina
Zhan, Xiao
Abu-Salma, Ruba
Such, Jose
contents The rapid adoption of generative AI (GenAI) chatbots has reshaped access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) information, particularly following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, as individuals assigned female at birth increasingly turn to online sources. However, existing research remains largely model-centered, paying limited attention to user privacy and safety. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 18 U.S.-based participants from both restrictive and non-restrictive states who had used GenAI chatbots to seek SRH information. Adoption was influenced by perceived utility, usability, credibility, accessibility, and anthropomorphism, and many participants disclosed sensitive personal SRH details. Participants identified multiple privacy risks, including excessive data collection, government surveillance, profiling, model training, and data commodification. While most participants accepted these risks in exchange for perceived utility, abortion-related queries elicited heightened safety concerns. Few participants employed protective strategies beyond minimizing disclosures or deleting data. Based on these findings, we offer design and policy recommendations, such as health-specific features and stronger moderation practices, to enhance privacy and safety in GenAI-supported SRH information seeking.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_16918
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Privacy and Safety Experiences and Concerns of U.S. Women Using Generative AI for Seeking Sexual and Reproductive Health Information
Kaleva, Ina
Zhan, Xiao
Abu-Salma, Ruba
Such, Jose
Human-Computer Interaction
Artificial Intelligence
The rapid adoption of generative AI (GenAI) chatbots has reshaped access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) information, particularly following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, as individuals assigned female at birth increasingly turn to online sources. However, existing research remains largely model-centered, paying limited attention to user privacy and safety. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 18 U.S.-based participants from both restrictive and non-restrictive states who had used GenAI chatbots to seek SRH information. Adoption was influenced by perceived utility, usability, credibility, accessibility, and anthropomorphism, and many participants disclosed sensitive personal SRH details. Participants identified multiple privacy risks, including excessive data collection, government surveillance, profiling, model training, and data commodification. While most participants accepted these risks in exchange for perceived utility, abortion-related queries elicited heightened safety concerns. Few participants employed protective strategies beyond minimizing disclosures or deleting data. Based on these findings, we offer design and policy recommendations, such as health-specific features and stronger moderation practices, to enhance privacy and safety in GenAI-supported SRH information seeking.
title Privacy and Safety Experiences and Concerns of U.S. Women Using Generative AI for Seeking Sexual and Reproductive Health Information
topic Human-Computer Interaction
Artificial Intelligence
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.16918