Measurement Instruments for the Anthropomorphism, Animacy, Likeability, Perceived Intelligence, and Perceived Safety of Robots

TLDR

Progress in HRI requires comparable results across studies. The study calls for standardized measurement tools in HRI and invites psychologists to refine and validate the proposed questionnaires. A literature review identified measures of anthropomorphism, animacy, likeability, perceived intelligence, and perceived safety, which were distilled into five semantic‑differential questionnaires whose reliability and validity were demonstrated in empirical studies. The authors hope that the questionnaires will enable robot developers to monitor progress.

Abstract

This study emphasizes the need for standardized measurement tools for human robot interaction (HRI). If we are to make progress in this field then we must be able to compare the results from different studies. A literature review has been performed on the measurements of five key concepts in HRI: anthropomorphism, animacy, likeability, perceived intelligence, and perceived safety. The results have been distilled into five consistent questionnaires using semantic differential scales. We report reliability and validity indicators based on several empirical studies that used these questionnaires. It is our hope that these questionnaires can be used by robot developers to monitor their progress. Psychologists are invited to further develop the questionnaires by adding new concepts, and to conduct further validations where it appears necessary.