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Updated: Nov 14, 2025

Psychophysiological Assessment of the Effectiveness of Emotion Regulation Strategies in Childhood
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Reducing negative emotions in children using social robots: systematic review

Brenda Kimbembi Maleco Littler1, Tourkiah Alessa2,3, Paul Dimitri4

  • 1The School of Health and Related Research, Centre for Assistive Technology and Connected Healthcare (C.A.T.C.H), The University of Sheffield Faculty of Medicine Dentistry and Health, Sheffield, UK bkmaleco1@sheffield.ac.uk.

Archives of Disease in Childhood
|March 9, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Social robots show promise in reducing hospital-related anxiety for children. This systematic review found that interacting with social robots decreased anxiety and distress in pediatric patients during clinical visits.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric healthcare technology
  • Human-robot interaction
  • Child psychology

Background:

  • Hospital visits can cause significant anxiety in children.
  • Social robots offer a novel approach to mitigate this distress.
  • These robots engage children through movement, music, and speech.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To systematically review the types of social robots used with children in hospital settings.
  • To assess the impact of social robots on children's anxiety and distress levels.
  • To evaluate evidence for social robots in outpatient and inpatient pediatric care.

Main Methods:

  • A comprehensive literature search was conducted across major databases (MEDLINE, PubMed, IEEE Xplore, Web of Science, PsychINFO, Google Scholar).
  • Studies published between January 2009 and August 2020 were included.
  • The review focused on research involving social robots interacting with children in clinical environments.

Main Results:

  • Ten studies met the inclusion criteria, utilizing seven distinct types of social robots.
  • Children who interacted with social robots demonstrated reduced levels of anxiety and distress.
  • The findings indicate a positive effect of social robot interaction on pediatric patients' emotional state.

Conclusions:

  • Social robots present a promising tool for alleviating anxiety in pediatric hospital patients.
  • Current research on social robots in pediatric healthcare is nascent.
  • Further studies are necessary to solidify the evidence base for their efficacy.
Abstract

Keywords:
qualitative researchtechnology

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