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Robot's Social Gaze Affects Conflict Resolution but not Conflict Adaptations
Francesca Ciardo1, Agnieszka Wykowska1
1Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Enrico Melen 83, 16152 Genova, IT.
Journal of Cognition
|September 8, 2022
Summary
Humanoid robots
Area of Science:
- Human-Robot Interaction
- Cognitive Science
- Robotics
Background:
- Cognitive control mechanisms are influenced by affective states.
- Social agents, like robots, can support cognitive skill training.
- Humanoid robots offer unique opportunities for social interaction research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of a humanoid robot's social gaze on cognitive control.
- To assess how robot gaze feedback affects conflict resolution and adaptation.
- To compare effects in embodied versus screen-based robot interactions.
Main Methods:
- Auditory Simon task used to measure cognitive control.
- Humanoid robot (iCub) provided mutual or avoiding gaze feedback.
- Three experiments compared screen-based and embodied robot setups with neutral feedback.
Main Results:
- Robot social gaze modulated conflict resolution, specifically increasing the Simon effect after mutual gaze.
- This modulatory effect was significant in an embodied setup but not a screen-based one.
- Conflict adaptations were not affected by the robot's gaze feedback.
Conclusions:
- Social gaze feedback from robots can modulate cognitive control in humans.
- Embodied humanoid robots are effective for real-time social feedback.
- Robots show potential for evaluating and training cognitive skills in diverse populations.
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