Project description

As the world becomes increasingly technology forward, the presence of artificial agents in day-to-day life also becomes more apparent. Studying the interaction between humans and artificial agents, such as robots or virtual assistants, has long been in the research spotlight. While research in this field is traditionally focused on how artificial agents can improve our lives, this PhD project aims at flipping the focus on humans helping artificial agents. 

The current state of artificial agents allows them to perform a wide variety of tasks. However, they sometimes have issues completing tasks and need further assistance or input from humans. We are aimed at understanding the boundary conditions under which people choose to show prosocial behavior towards a robot, for example. In order to expand the research possibilities in this regard, a robot interaction lab is being set up together with the University of Tübingen, equipped with a social robot that can recognize emotions based on facial and vocal features. Gaining knowledge and understanding of when and why people help artificial agents is relevant for the integration of these agents in our society.

Cooperations

• Dr. Nadia Said, University of Tübingen (Psychology)
• Prof. Dr. Georg Jahn, University of Technology Chemnitz