Exploratory evaluation of politeness in human-robot interaction (original) (raw)

Politeness in Human-Robot Interaction: A Multi-Experiment Study with Non-Humanoid Robots

International Journal of Social Robotics, 2022

We studied politeness in human-robot interaction based on Lakoff's politeness theory. In a series of eight studies, we manipulated three different levels of politeness of non-humanoid robots and evaluated their effects. A table-setting task was developed for two different types of robots (a robotic manipulator and a mobile robot). The studies included two different populations (old and young adults) and were conducted in two conditions (video and live). Results revealed that polite robot behavior positively affected users' perceptions of the interaction with the robots and that participants were able to differentiate between the designed politeness levels. Participants reported higher levels of enjoyment, satisfaction, and trust when they interacted with the politest behavior of the robot. A smaller number of young adults trusted the politest behavior of the robot compared to old adults. Enjoyment and trust in the interaction with the robot were higher when study participants were subjected to the live condition compared to video and participants were more satisfied when they interacted with a mobile robot compared to a manipulator.

Effects of Polite Behaviors Expressed by Robots

International Journal of Synthetic Emotions, 2010

A psychological experiment was conducted to straightforwardly investigate the effects of polite behaviors expressed by robots in Japan, using a small-sized humanoid robot that performed four types of behaviors with voice task instructions. Results of the experiment suggested that the subjects who experienced “deep bowing” motion of the robot felt it more extrovert than those who experienced “just standing” motion. Subjects who experienced “lying” motion of the robot felt the robot less polite than those who experienced the other motions. Female subjects more strongly feeling the robot extrovert replied for the task instruction from the robot faster, although no such trend was found in the male subjects. However, the male subjects who did not perform the task felt the robot less polite than the male subjects who performed the task and the female subjects who did not perform the task.

Improving the interaction of Older Adults with Socially Assistive Robots for Table setting

ArXiv, 2021

This study provides user-studies aimed at exploring factors influencing the interaction between older adults and a robotic table setting assistant. The in-fluence of the level of automation (LOA) and level of transparency (LOT) on the quality of the interaction was considered. Results revealed that the interaction effect of LOA and LOT significantly influenced the interaction. A lower LOA which required the user to control some of the actions of the robot influenced the older adults to participate more in the interaction when the LOT was low com-pared to situations with higher LOT (more information) and higher LOA (more robot autonomy). Even though the higher LOA influenced more fluency in the interaction, the lower LOA encouraged a more collaborative form of interaction which is a priority in the design of robotic aids for older adult users. The results provide some insights into shared control designs which accommodates the preferences of the older adult users as they interact with robotic aids such as the table setting robot used in this study.

Improving the Interaction of Older Adults with a Socially Assistive Table Setting Robot

Social Robotics

This study provides user-studies aimed at exploring factors influencing the interaction between older adults and a robotic table setting assistant. The influence of level of automation (LOA) and level of transparency (LOT) on the quality of the interaction was considered. Results revealed that the interaction effect of LOA and LOT significantly influenced the interaction. A lower LOA which required the user to control some of the actions of the robot influenced the older adults to participate more in the interaction when the LOT was low compared to situations with higher LOT (more information) and higher LOA (more robot autonomy). Even though, the higher LOA influenced more fluency in the interaction, the lower LOA encouraged a more collaborative form of interaction which is a priority in the design of robotic aids for older adult users. The results provide some insights into shared control designs which accommodates the preferences of the older adult users as they interact with robotic aids such as the table setting robot used in this study

The Influence of Politeness Behavior on User Compliance with Social Robots in a Healthcare Service Setting

springer, 2017

Particularly in the healthcare service domain, social robots are expected to be good assistants, advisers, or practitioners. To increase the effectiveness of healthcare services provided by social robots, patients must comply with their requests. Research is plentiful on what makes patients comply with healthcare advice. In this paper, which is based on Bulgurcu's study of rationality-based beliefs, command-compliance theory, and social exchange theory, we propose a research model of compliance during interaction with social robots, examining beliefs about and overall assessments of the consequences of complying with robot requests and extending the findings of previous studies to the setting of healthcare services. We specifically investigate the perceived level of politeness in robots' speech and gestures as a determinant of compliance intention. Using a social robot, NAO, as a provider of healthcare services, we conducted an experiment. The results suggest that the aforementioned theories are useful in understanding user behaviors toward social robots in a healthcare service setting. Interestingly, and unlike in other settings, the perceived level of politeness of a social robot in a healthcare service setting negatively affects the perceived benefit of compliance, and, hence, intention to comply.

The relationships between humans and robots in the service encounters: The role of satisfaction and age

2019

Human-Robot Interactions: Over the years, many experts have analyzed human behaviour in social interactions and realized that often, these were influenced by the context and/or environment in which they were studied. In particular, social interaction is established when two or more individuals act in the presence of another individual thus influencing one another. The influx that one individual is capable of imprinting to another individual depends on several different character and situational traits. Specifically, during personal encounters, interaction is established by: The situation: that is, the time and place in which things occur The participants: i.e. the number, character and personality of the individuals The centres of attention: that represent the points in which attention is concentrated during interaction In any case, our study will not focus on person-to-person interaction, but on the differences in the relational approach between humanoids and humans, taking into due consideration customer satisfaction and WOM. Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) is still studied very much especially in reference to the improvement of people's lives in the years ahead. This is the reason why it is fundamental to provide the context and procedures through which interaction between man and robot occurs. Interaction can be defined as communication between man and robot in HRI as well. This type of communication can occur in different ways and with different procedures and can depend on different factors, but it is essential to distinguish when and where it can occur. We can split this type of communication into Remote Interaction and Proximate Interaction. In the first type, the actors will not be placed close to one another, but there will be a certain time and/or space distance, while in the second category, robots and humans will interact in the same room. Apart from defining the context, the following should be stressed: how the process which leads to achieving the target depends on the confluence of factors like the margin of autonomy, the type of exchanged information, progress, the ability to learn, training of the robot and human and lastly the difficulty of the work to be carried out. All of these variables are equally important, but for the purpose of this project, we shall focus on the information exchanged because it creates satisfaction thus providing WOM. Interaction efficiency will derive from Interaction Time 1 , that is, time required for communication or robot training, mental effort for interaction 2 , situation awareness 3 deriving from interaction and the amount of shared understanding 4. There are two aspects that will determine

The Influence of a Robot's Social Abilities on Acceptance by Elderly Users

Robot and Human …, 2006

This study examines the influence of perceived social abilities of a robot on user's attitude towards and acceptance of the robot. An interface robot with simulated conversational capabilities was used in a Wizard of Oz experiment with two conditions: a more socially communicative (the robot made use of a larger set of social abilities in interaction) and a less socially communicative interface. Participants (n=40) were observed in 5 minute interaction sessions and were asked to answer questions on perceived social abilities and technology acceptance. Results show that participants who were confronted with the more socially communicative version of the robot felt more comfortable and were more expressive in communicating with it. This suggests that the more socially communicative condition would be more likely to be accepted as a conversational partner. However, the findings did not show a significant correlation between perceived social abilities and technology acceptance.

Designing Acceptable Robots for Assisting Older Adults: A Pilot Study on the Willingness to Interact

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

The aim of this paper was to explore the psychosocial determinants that lead to acceptability and willingness to interact with a service robot, starting with an analysis of older users’ behaviors toward the Robot-Era platform, in order to provide strategies for the promotion of social assistive robotics. A mixed-method approach was used to collect information on acceptability, usability, and human–robot interaction, by analyzing nonverbal behaviors, emotional expressions, and verbal communication. The study involved 35 older adults. Twenty-two were women and thirteen were men, aged 73.8 (±6) years old. Video interaction analysis was conducted to capture the users’ gestures, statements, and expressions. A coded scheme was designed on the basis of the literature in the field. Percentages of time and frequency of the selected events are reported. The statements of the users were collected and analyzed. The results of the behavioral analysis reveal a largely positive attitude, inferred ...

Feedback modalities for a table setting robot assistant for elder care

2021

Older adults' interaction with robots requires effective feedback to keep them aware of the state of the interaction for optimum interaction quality. This study examines the effect of different feedback modalities in a table setting robot assistant for elder care. Two different feedback modalities (visual and auditory) and their combination were evaluated for three complexity levels. The visual feedback included the use of LEDs and a GUI screen. The auditory feedback included alerts (beeps) and verbal commands. The results revealed that the quality of interaction was influenced mainly by the feedback modality, and complexity had less influence. The verbal feedback was significantly preferable and increased the participants’ involvement during the experiment. The combination of LED lights and verbal commands increased participants' understanding contributing to the quality of interaction.

“Don’t Get Distracted!”: The Role of Social Robots’ Interaction Style on Users’ Cognitive Performance, Acceptance, and Non-Compliant Behavior

International Journal of Social Robotics, 2020

Social robots are developed to provide companionship and assistance in the daily life of the children, older, and disable people but also have great potential as educational technology by facilitating learning. In these application areas, a social robot can take the role of a coach by training and assisting individuals also in cognitive tasks. Since a robot’s interaction style affects users’ trust and acceptance, customizing its behavior to the proposed tasks could, potentially, have an impact on the users’ performance. To investigate these phenomena, we enrolled sixty volunteers and endowed a social robot with a friendly and an authoritarian interaction style. The aim was to explore whether and how the robot’s interaction style could enhance users’ cognitive performance during a psychometric evaluation. The results showed that the authoritarian interaction style seems to be more appropriate to improve the performance when the tasks require high cognitive demands. These differences ...