Comparing a computer agent with a humanoid robot

TLDR

HRI researchers have heavily invested in humanoid robots, yet evidence that people respond differently to robots versus computer agents remains sparse, implying agent studies could test HRI hypotheses. The study experimentally compared participants’ responses in a health interview with a computer agent, a remote robot, and a collocated robot to understand differences in social interactions, and discusses tradeoffs for using these proxies in HRI research. Participants engaged in a health interview with either a computer agent projected on a monitor or life‑size screen, a remote robot projected life‑size on a screen, or a collocated robot in the same room. The study revealed behavioral and attitudinal differences: participants recalled less and disclosed less with the collocated robot, followed by the projected remote robot, and most with the agent; they also spent more time and had the most positive attitudes toward the collocated robot.

Abstract

HRI researchers interested in social robots have made large investments in humanoid robots. There is still sparse evidence that peoples' responses to robots differ from their responses to computer agents, suggesting that agent studies might serve to test HRI hypotheses. To help us understand the difference between people's social interactions with an agent and a robot, we experimentally compared people's responses in a health interview with (a) a computer agent projected either on a computer monitor or life-size on a screen, (b) a remote robot projected life-size on a screen, or (c) a collocated robot in the same room. We found a few behavioral and large attitude differences across these conditions. Participants forgot more and disclosed least with the collocated robot, next with the projected remote robot, and then with the agent. They spent more time with the collocated robot and their attitudes were most positive toward that robot. We discuss tradeoffs for HRI research of using collocated robots, remote robots, and computer agents as proxies of robots.