Technology

The robots are coming. Of course, they are already here, mostly in the manufacturing sector. Robots designed to function in the much softer and chaotic environment of a home, however, are still in their infancy (mainly toys and vacuum cleaners). Slowly but surely, however, robots are spreading out of the factory and into places where they interact with humans. As part of this process, researchers are studying how people socially react to robots, and how robot behavior can be tweaked to optimize this interaction.

We know from prior research that people react to non-living things as if they are real people (technically, as if they have agency) if they act as if they have a mind of their own. Our brains sort the world into agents and objects, and this categorization seems to entirely depend on how something moves. Further, emotion can be conveyed with minimalistic cues. This is why cartoons work, or ventriloquist dummies.