AI Mental Model

A user's conceptual representation of how an artificial intelligence system works, including beliefs about its information sources, processing methods, capabilities, and limitations. Mental models of AI are often incomplete, oversimplified, or erroneous, which can lead to misplaced trust, over-reliance, or underutilization of AI tools. For blind users of generative AI, mental models are uniquely shaped by the inaccessibility of interfaces—for example, unlabeled feedback buttons lead users to believe that typed corrections in chat will improve future AI responses. Common mental models of GenAI among blind users include viewing it as a "super search engine," a massive knowledge database, a word prediction machine, or an anthropomorphized assistant.