Longitudinal diary data: Six months real-world implementation of affordable companion robots for older people in supported living

Companion robots have potential for improving wellbeing within aged care, however literature focuses on shorter-term studies often using relatively expensive platforms, raising concerns around novelty effects and economic viability. Here, we report ecologically valid diary data from two supported living facilities for older people with dementia or learning difficulties. Both sites implemented Joy for All robot animals and maintained diaries for six months. Entries were analysed using thematic analysis. We found robot use increased over the six months, changing from short, structured sessions to mainly permanent availability. Thus previously reported concerns on novelty were not warranted. Both sites reported positive outcomes including reminiscence, improved communication and potential wellbeing benefits (reduced agitation/anxiety). Incidences of negative responses included devices described as 'creepy.' Devices appeared sufficiently robust for prolonged daily use with multiple users. Overall, we provide insight into real-world implementation of affordable companion robots, and longitudinal development of use

Ethical perceptions towards real-world use of companion robots with older people and people with dementia: survey opinions among younger adults

Contains fulltext : 221334.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)Background: Use of companion robots may reduce older people's depression, loneliness and agitation. This benefit has to be contrasted against possible ethical concerns raised by philosophers in the field around issues such as deceit, infantilisation, reduced human contact and accountability. Research directly assessing prevalence of such concerns among relevant stakeholders, however, remains limited, even though their views clearly have relevance in the debate. For example, any discrepancies between ethicists and stakeholders might in itself be a relevant ethical consideration while concerns perceived by stakeholders might identify immediate barriers to successful implementation. Methods: We surveyed 67 younger adults after they had live interactions with companion robot pets while attending an exhibition on intimacy, including the context of intimacy for older people. We asked about their perceptions of ethical issues. Participants generally had older family members, some with dementia. Results: Most participants (40/67, 60%) reported having no ethical concerns towards companion robot use when surveyed with an open question. Twenty (30%) had some concern, the most common being reduced human contact (10%), followed by deception (6%). However, when choosing from a list, the issue perceived as most concerning was equality of access to devices based on socioeconomic factors (m = 4.72 on a scale 1-7), exceeding more commonly hypothesized issues such as infantilising (m = 3.45), and deception (m = 3.44). The lowest-scoring issues were potential for injury or harm (m = 2.38) and privacy concerns (m = 2.17). Over half (39/67 (58%)) would have bought a device for an older relative. Cost was a common reason for choosing not to purchase a device. Conclusions: Although a relatively small study, we demonstrated discrepancies between ethical concerns raised in the philosophical literature and those likely to make the decision to buy a companion robot. Such discrepancies, between philosophers and ‘end-users’ in care of older people, and in methods of ascertainment, are worthy of further empirical research and discussion. Our participants were more concerned about economic issues and equality of access, an important consideration for those involved with care of older people. On the other hand the concerns proposed by ethicists seem unlikely to be a barrier to use of companion robots.10 p

Deer Use of Riparian Zones and Adjacent Pine Plantations in Texas

The authors monitored white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) use of riparian zones (RZ’s) and adjacent pine plantations of 3 age classes (young, 1 to 3 years old; intermediate, 5 to 7 years old; and older, 9 to 13 years old) using radio telemetry for 2 years on a 1,300 ha study area near Alto, TX. Riparian zones comprised 22.0 percent of the area; young, intermediate, and older pine plantations comprised 19.1 percent, 45.7 percent, and 13.2 percent, respectively. Based on data from 4 to 9 deer the first year and 12 to 17 deer the second year, home ranges averaged 103, 71, 95, and 114 ha during spring, summer, fall, and winter, respectively, and were composed primarily of intermediate-age plantations and RZ’s. Deer showed significant preferences for intermediate-age pine plantations during all seasons and for RZ’s during fall and winter. Older plantations produced little forage due to canopy closure, and were generally avoided throughout the year. Young plantations, which provided the most forage but the least cover, received relatively light yearlong use and were a minor component of deer home ranges. For females and young males, this study demonstrates that, where available, RZ’s may comprise an important component of deer home ranges in intensively managed forests

Microbial contamination and efficacy of disinfection procedures of companion robots in care homes

Contains fulltext : 221797.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)Background: Paro and other robot animals can improve wellbeing for older adults and people with dementia, through reducing depression, agitation and medication use. However, nursing and care staff we contacted expressed infection control concerns. Little related research has been published. We assessed (i) how microbiologically contaminated robot animals become during use by older people within a care home and (ii) efficacy of a cleaning procedure. Methods: This study had two stages. In stage one we assessed microbial load on eight robot animals after interaction with four care home residents, and again following cleaning by a researcher. Robot animals provided a range of shell-types, including fur, soft plastic, and solid plastic. Stage two involved a similar process with two robot animals, but a care staff member conducted cleaning. The cleaning process involved spraying with anti-bacterial product, brushing fur-type shells, followed by vigorous top-to-tail cleaning with anti-bacterial wipes on all shell types. Two samples were taken from each of eight robots in stage one and two robots in stage two (20 samples total). Samples were collected using contact plate stamping and evaluated using aerobic colony count and identification (gram stain, colony morphology, coagulase agglutination). Colony counts were measured by colony forming units per square centimetre (CFU/cm2). Results: Most robots acquired microbial loads well above an acceptable threshold of 2.5 CFU/cm2 following use. The bacteria identified were micrococcus species, coagulase negative staphylococcus, diptheriods, aerobic spore bearers, and staphylococcus aureus, all of which carry risk for human health. For all devices the CFU/cm2 reduced to well within accepted limits following cleaning by both researcher and care staff member. Conclusions: Companion robots will acquire significant levels of bacteria during normal use. The simple cleaning procedure detailed in this study reduced microbial load to acceptable levels in controlled experiments. Further work is needed in the field and to check the impact on the transmission of viruses.17 p

Implementing Affordable Socially Assistive Pet Robots in Care Homes Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Stratified Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial and Mixed Methods Study.

BACKGROUND: Robot pets may assist in the challenges of supporting an aging population with growing dementia prevalence. Prior work has focused on the impacts of the robot seal Paro on older adult well-being, but recent studies have suggested the good acceptability and implementation feasibility of more affordable devices (Joy for All [JfA] cats and dogs). OBJECTIVE: We aimed to address the limited effectiveness research on JfA devices. METHODS: We conducted an 8-month, stratified, cluster randomized controlled trial in 8 care homes in Cornwall, United Kingdom. Over 4 months, 4 care homes each received 2 JfA devices (1 cat and 1 dog; intervention group), and 4 homes received care as usual (control group). Psychometrics were collected before and after the intervention to compare the change from baseline to follow-up between the groups. In the final 4 months, all 8 care homes received devices, but only qualitative data were collected owing to COVID-19 and reduced capacity. The primary outcome was neuropsychiatric symptoms (Neuropsychiatric Inventory [NPI] Nursing Home version). Care provider burden was a secondary outcome (occupational disruptiveness NPI subscale), alongside the Challenging Behavior scale, the Holden communication scale, the Campaign to End Loneliness questionnaire, and medication use. Qualitative data were collected through care staff observation calendars and end-of-study interviews to understand use, experience, and impact. We also collected demographic data and assessed dementia severity. In total, 253 residents had robot interaction opportunities, and 83 were consented for direct data collection. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the total change from baseline to follow-up between the intervention and control groups for NPI (P<.001) and occupational disruptiveness (P=.03). Neuropsychiatric symptoms increased in the control group and decreased in the intervention group. No significant difference was seen for communication issues or challenging behavior. For NPI subdomains, there were significant differences from baseline to follow-up in delusions (P=.03), depression (P=.01), anxiety (P=.001), elation (P=.02), and apathy (P=.009), all of which decreased in the intervention group and increased slightly in the control group. The summative impact results suggested that most residents (46/54, 85%) who interacted with robots experienced a positive impact. Those who interacted had significantly higher dementia severity scores (P=.001). The qualitative results suggested good adoption, acceptability, and suitability for subjectively lonely individuals and lack of a novelty effect through sustained use, and demonstrated that the reasons for use were entertainment, anxiety, and agitation. CONCLUSIONS: Affordable robot pets hold potential for improving the well-being of care home residents and people with dementia, including reducing neuropsychiatric symptoms and occupational disruptiveness. This work suggests no novelty effect and contributes toward understanding robot pet suitability. Moreover, interactions were more common among residents with more moderate/severe dementia and those subjectively lonely. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04168463; https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT0416846

Griffiths-McCoy singularities in the transverse field Ising model on the randomly diluted square lattice

The site-diluted transverse field Ising model in two dimensions is studied with Quantum-Monte-Carlo simulations. Its phase diagram is determined in the transverse field (Gamma) and temperature (T) plane for various (fixed) concentrations (p). The nature of the quantum Griffiths phase at zero temperature is investigated by calculating the distribution of the local zero-frequency susceptibility. It is pointed out that the nature of the Griffiths phase is different for small and large Gamma.Comment: 21 LaTeX (JPSJ macros included), 12 eps-figures include

Morphology of socially assistive robots for health and social care: A reflection on 24 months of research with anthropomorphic, zoomorphic and mechanomorphic devices

Contains fulltext : 236633.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Closed access)This paper reflects on four studies completed over the last 24 months, with social robots including Pepper, Paro, Joy for All cats and dogs, Miro, Pleo, Padbot and cheaper toys, including i) focus groups and interviews on suitable robot pet design, ii) surveys on ethical perceptions of robot pets, and iii) recorded interactions between stakeholders and a range of social robots. In total, up to 371 participants' views were included across the analysed studies. Data was reviewed and mined for relevance to the use and impact of morphology types for social robots in health and social care. Results suggested biomorphic design was preferable over mechanomorphic, and speech and life-simulation features (such as breathing) were well received. Anthropomorphism demonstrated some limitations in evoking fear and task-expectations that were absent for zoomorphic designs. The combination of familiar, zoomorphic appearance with animacy, life-simulation and speech capabilities thus appeared to be an area of research for future robots developed for health and social care.2021 30th IEEE International Conference on Robot & Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN) (Vancouver, Canada, 8-12 Aug. 2021

Finite Temperature and Dynamical Properties of the Random Transverse-Field Ising Spin Chain

We study numerically the paramagnetic phase of the spin-1/2 random transverse-field Ising chain, using a mapping to non-interacting fermions. We extend our earlier work, Phys. Rev. 53, 8486 (1996), to finite temperatures and to dynamical properties. Our results are consistent with the idea that there are ``Griffiths-McCoy'' singularities in the paramagnetic phase described by a continuously varying exponent $z(\delta)$, where $\delta$ measures the deviation from criticality. There are some discrepancies between the values of $z(\delta)$ obtained from different quantities, but this may be due to corrections to scaling. The average on-site time dependent correlation function decays with a power law in the paramagnetic phase, namely $\tau^{-1/z(\delta)}$, where $\tau$ is imaginary time. However, the typical value decays with a stretched exponential behavior, $\exp(-c\tau^{1/\mu})$, where $\mu$ may be related to $z(\delta)$. We also obtain results for the full probability distribution of time dependent correlation functions at different points in the paramagnetic phase.Comment: 10 pages, 14 postscript files included. The discussion of the typical time dependent correlation function has been greatly expanded. Other papers of APY are available on-line at http://schubert.ucsc.edu/pete

Disorder-induced rounding of certain quantum phase transitions

We study the influence of quenched disorder on quantum phase transitions in systems with over-damped dynamics. For Ising order parameter symmetry disorder destroys the sharp phase transition by rounding because a static order parameter can develop on rare spatial regions. This leads to an exponential dependence of the order parameter on the coupling constant. At finite temperatures the static order on the rare regions is destroyed. This restores the phase transition and leads to a double-exponential relation between critical temperature and coupling strength. We discuss the behavior based on Lifshitz-tail arguments and illustrate the results by simulations of a model system.Comment: 4 pages, 3 eps figure