Taking the self out of self-rule

Many philosophers believe that agents are self-ruled only when ruled by their (authentic) selves. Though this view is rarely argued for explicitly, one tempting line of thought suggests that self-rule is just obviously equivalent to rule by the self. However, the plausibility of this thought evaporates upon close examination of the logic of ‘self-rule’ and similar reflexives. Moreover, attempts to rescue the account by recasting it in negative terms are unpromising. In light of these problems, this paper instead proposes that agents are self-ruled only when not ruled by others. One reason for favouring this negative social view is its ability to yield plausible conclusions concerning various manipulation cases that are notoriously problematic for nonsocial accounts of self-rule. A second reason is that the account conforms with ordinary usage. It is concluded that self-rule may be best thought of as an essentially social concept

Comparing robots with different levels of autonomy in educational setting

\u3cp\u3eRobots’ ability to learn and show autonomous/intelligent behavior is expected to bring a breakthrough in usage of robots in education and assistive technologies. We compared a fully remotely operated robot (e. g. a robot with low autonomy) with one that could recognize cards and develop a playing strategy (i.e. highly autonomous) in a quartet game. We tested whether children perceive the robot in both conditions differently. Using a within-subject design, fourteen typically developed children played with a robot with high or low autonomy. The results show that both robots were evaluated equally engaging for the children. However, the introduction of more autonomy in robot’s behavior and interaction increased the time that the educator or therapist can pay attention to the child. Consequentially, the perceived usefulness of the robot and the triadic interaction between the robot, child and educator or therapist were considerably improved from the perspective of the educator.\u3c/p\u3

The effect of a semi-autonomous robot on children

This research focuses on designing the behavior of an\u3cbr/\u3esemi-autonomous robot that supports the researcher while still\u3cbr/\u3ebeing in control of the interaction. We present a study on\u3cbr/\u3ebehavioral intervention design in which elements of Pivotal\u3cbr/\u3eResponse Treatment elements are embedded into a game played\u3cbr/\u3eby a robot and a child. The introduction of more autonomy in\u3cbr/\u3erobot behavior and interaction increases the time that a\u3cbr/\u3eresearcher can focus on the child. In order to understand\u3cbr/\u3ewhether children perceive an autonomous robot differently than\u3cbr/\u3ea remotely controlled robot, we examined the preferences of\u3cbr/\u3echildren. Using a within-subject design, fourteen typically\u3cbr/\u3edeveloped children played with a robot that performed behavior\u3cbr/\u3eeither autonomously or through remote control. The results show\u3cbr/\u3ethat both robots were evaluated as equally engaging for the\u3cbr/\u3echildren. Thus, autonomous robots allow the operator to focus\u3cbr/\u3eless on remotely controlling the robot and more on the\u3cbr/\u3einteraction

Personalizing educational game play with a robot partner

Personalization of educational and behavioral training to the developmental stage of the individual child is common practice in educational and therapeutic settings. Research on robot-based education training is only just starting to adopt this approach. We present a pilot study on a behavioral intervention design in which Pivotal Response Training (PRT) elements are embedded into a game played by a robot and a child. Seven game levels are designed to cover different levels of communication skills that are targeted by PRT. The levels do not differ with respect to the logical steps in the game that the children should take, only with respect to the social competence that the child has. The behaviors displayed at each stage were observed and analyzed using qualitative and quantitative methods. Our results indicate that the more socially challenging a game is, the happier children are and the more children engage with playing the game, although the game challenge remains the sam

Towards Autonomous Artificial Agents? Proposal for a Naturalistic Activity-Based Model of (Artificial) Life

While the contemporary achievements of AI and robotics are indisputable, the issue of autonomy for artificial agents still looms ahead despite technological progress and rich conceptual debates. Drawing on recent theoretical propositions from the enactive approach to autonomy, we first highlight several limitations of what we call an identity-based model. Through the study of four real-life cases, we then not only argue that autonomy cannot be conflated with behavioral self-maintenance or organizational closure, but that it can sometimes violate these conditions. Finally, we propose a naturalistic activity-based model of autonomous agents that emphasizes the importance of norm-establishing processes distributed across an intricacy of milieus.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe