Influence of Animallike Affective Non-verbal Behavior on Children's Perceptions of a Zoomorphic Robot

Isobel Voysey, Lynne Baillie, Joanne Williams, J. Michael Herrmann

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

Abstract

Zoomorphic robots are a promising tool for animal welfare education and could be used to teach children that animals have minds and emotions and thereby reduce acceptance of cruelty towards animals. This study investigated the influence of animallike affective non-verbal behavior on children's perceptions of the attributes and mental abilities of a zoomorphic robot, as well as their acceptance of cruelty towards it. Children who interacted with a robot that displayed animallike affective non-verbal behavior ascribed a significantly higher level of mental abilities. Higher levels of perceived mental abilities were not generally correlated with lower acceptance of cruelty but higher levels of perceived social attributes were. Post-hoc analysis of reasoning given for unacceptability of cruelty found that the group of children who made moral judgments about the cruelty had rated the zoomorphic robot as significantly more animate.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationRO-MAN 2022 - 31st IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication
Subtitle of host publicationSocial, Asocial, and Antisocial Robots
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Pages1443-1450
Number of pages8
ISBN (Electronic)9781728188591
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 30 Sept 2022
Event31st IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, RO-MAN 2022 - Napoli, Italy
Duration: 29 Aug 20222 Sept 2022

Publication series

NameInternational Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication
PublisherIEEE
ISSN (Print)1944-9445
ISSN (Electronic)1944-9437

Conference

Conference31st IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, RO-MAN 2022
Country/TerritoryItaly
CityNapoli
Period29/08/222/09/22

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