Gender Fairness in Social Robotics : Exploring a Future Care of Peripartum Depression

In this paper we investigate the possibility of socially assistive robots (SARs) supporting diagnostic screening for peripartum depression (PPD) within the next five years. Through a HRI/socio-legal collaboration, we explore the gender norms within PPD in Sweden, to inform a gender-sensitive approach to designing SARs in such a setting, as well as governance implications. This is achieved through conducting expert interviews and qualitatively analysing the data. Based on the results, we conclude that a gender-sensitive approach is a necessity in relation to the design and governance of SARs for PPD screening

Robots Need the Ability to Navigate Abusive Interactions

Researchers are seeing more and more cases of abusive disinhibition towards robots in public realms. Because robots embody gendered identities, poor navigation of antisocial dynamics may reinforce or exacerbate gender-based violence. It is essential that robots deployed in social settings be able to recognize and respond to abuse in a way that minimises ethical risk. Enabling this capability requires designers to first understand the risk posed by abuse of robots, and hence how humans perceive robot-directed abuse. To that end, we experimentally investigated reactions to a physically abusive interaction between a human perpetrator and a victimized agent. Given extensions of gendered biases to robotic agents, as well as associations between an agent’s human likeness and the experiential capacity attributed to it, we quasi-manipulated the victim’s humanness (via use of a human actor vs. NAO robot) and gendering (via inclusion of stereotypically masculine vs. feminine cues in their presentation) across four video-recorded reproductions of the interaction. Analysis of data from 417 participants, each of whom watched one of the four videos, indicates that the intensity of emotional distress felt by an observer is associated with their gender identification, previous experience with victimization, hostile sexism, and support for social stratification, as well as the victim’s gendering

Effects of Victim Gendering and Humanness on People’s Responses to the Physical Abuse of Humanlike Agents

With the deployment of robots in public realms, researchers are seeing more cases of abusive disinhibition towards robots. Because robots embody gendered identities, poor navigation of antisocial dynamics may reinforce or exacerbate gender-based marginalization. Consequently, it is essential for robots to recognize and effectively head off abuse. Given extensions of gendered biases to robotic agents, as well as associations between an agent\u27s human likeness and the experiential capacity attributed to it, we quasi-manipulated the victim\u27s humanness (human vs. robot) and gendering (via the inclusion of stereotypically masculine vs. feminine cues in their presentation) across four video-recorded reproductions of the interaction. Analysis from 422 participants, each of whom watched one of the four videos, indicates that intensity of emotional distress felt by an observer is associated with their gender identification and support for social stratification, along with the victim\u27s gendering—further underscoring the criticality of robots\u27 social intelligence

Robot's Gendering Trouble: A Scoping Review of Gendering Humanoid Robots and its Effects on HRI

The discussion around the problematic practice of gendering humanoid robots has risen to the foreground in the last few years. To lay the basis for a thorough understanding of how robot's "gender" has been understood within the Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) community - i.e., how it has been manipulated, in which contexts, and which effects it has yield on people's perceptions and interactions with robots - we performed a scoping review of the literature. We identified 553 papers relevant for our review retrieved from 5 different databases. The final sample of reviewed papers included 35 papers written between 2005 and 2021, which involved a total of 3902 participants. In this article, we thoroughly summarize these papers by reporting information about their objectives and assumptions on gender (i.e., definitions and reasons to manipulate gender), their manipulation of robot's "gender" (i.e., gender cues and manipulation checks), their experimental designs (e.g., demographics of participants, employed robots), and their results (i.e., main and interaction effects). The review reveals that robot's "gender" does not affect crucial constructs for the HRI, such as likability and acceptance, but rather bears its strongest effect on stereotyping. We leverage our different epistemological backgrounds in Social Robotics and Gender Studies to provide a comprehensive interdisciplinary perspective on the results of the review and suggest ways to move forward in the field of HRI.Comment: 29 pages, 1 figure, 3 long tables. The present paper has been submitted for publication to the International Journal of Social Robotics and is currently under revie

Effects of Gendered Anthropomorphism and Image Appeal on Moral Norms in the Context of Charity Website Design

As the internet has developed, the barriers to online donations have decreased – in order to effectively differentiate, charities have adopted various interface design innovations to encourage donors. This study examines the efficacy of anthropomorphism and visual/image appeals in increasing willingness to donate to a charity website. This paper reports findings from the first in a series of experiments. Specifically, we test the effect of image type (negative affect vs positive affect) on the variables of image appeal, moral norms, and intentions to donate. Our future experiments will build on the findings presented here, by testing the influence of anthropomorphized vs non- anthropomorphized websites on the same variables. Once finalized, the results of this research will contribute to IS research through suggesting appropriate interface design and to charity donation research through the evaluation of alternative channels for donations

How do Consumers' Gender and Rational Thinking Affect the Acceptance of Entertainment Social Robots?

In recent years, the rapid ageing of the population, a longer life expectancy and elderly people's desire to live independently are social changes that put pressure on healthcare systems. This context is boosting the demand for companion and entertainment social robots on the market and, consequently, producers and distributors are interested in knowing how these social robots are accepted by consumers. Based on technology acceptance models, a parsimonious model is proposed to estimate the intention to use this new advanced social robot technology and, in addition, an analysis is performed to determine how consumers' gender and rational thinking condition the precedents of the intention to use. The results show that gender differences are more important than suggested by the literature. While women gave greater social influence and perceived enjoyment as the main motives for using a social robot, in contrast, men considered their perceived usefulness to be the principal reason and, as a differential argument, the ease of use. Regarding the reasoning system, the most significant differences occurred between heuristic individuals, who stated social influence as the main reason for using a robot, and the more rational consumers, who gave ease of use as a differential argument

Probation officer prototypes: Perceptions of probationers with and without mental illness

In recent years the criminal justice system has managed large numbers of persons with mental illness, many of whom are supervised in the community on probation. Given that probation agencies are stretched to the maximum and have little extra time to take on additional challenges, probation officers (PO) may use typifications or perceptual shorthand as a means for efficiently managing their caseloads. Despite the role typifications may play in the processing of probationers, to date no research has attempted to characterize PO typifications; The reason for the dearth of literature in this area appears to be the result of many factors, including the lack of a solid operational definition for typifications. Fortunately, the widely studied and empirically validated psychological construct of prototypes can be utilized to help lay the foundation lacking in the typifications literature. Using this foundation, this study\u27s primary goal was to elicit, characterize and compare PO prototypes of both the typical or routine probationer (TRP) and the probationer with mental illness (PMI); Participants were 61 adult PO who completed a survey describing either their prototype of TRP or PMI. Qualitative analyses of the survey responses revealed that PO have multifaceted and unique prototypes of both TRP and PMI. The implications of these prototypes and directions for future research are discussed

Use of Live and Robotic Assistance Animals for Psychological and Cognitive Health in Military Populations

This literature review addresses the use of live and robotic animal-assisted therapy for psychological and cognitive health in military populations. More specifically, this literature review aims to address the benefits and limitations of the use of live animal-assisted therapy, complementary and alternative techniques (i.e., Combat and Emotional Stress Control Dogs and social robots) for military personnel, and possible attitudinal barriers regarding active duty and veteran soldiers, while utilizing literature conducted with the civilian population to augment. A systematic review of peer-reviewed quantitative and qualitative publications and book chapters was utilized to accomplish this. Results of the literature review indicated that animal-assisted therapy and the use of complementary and alternative techniques has been found to not only improve psychological and cognitive health of military personnel but can also positively impact the individual’s interpersonal functioning and quality of life. General limitations of the literature review included limited empirical studies, a reliance on qualitative information, small sample sizes, lack of standardization, and lack of detailed demographic information. General clinical implications included the lengthy process to obtain an animal, the cost, adverse effects on the individual, stress to the animal, and proper utilization of the intervention. Recommendations for future research include the completion of more empirical studies for animal-assisted therapy and complementary and alternative techniques with military personnel with a focus on the specific impact the intervention has, exploring the theory regarding the mechanisms of how animal-assisted therapy works, and the creation of a succinct policy for the use of animal-assisted therapy on military instillations

2008 Annual Research Symposium Abstract Book

2008 annual volume of abstracts for science research projects conducted by students at Trinity College