Challenges in Adopting Companion Robots: An Exploratory Study of Robotic Companionship Conducted with Chinese Retirees

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Wang, Mengyang, Yu, Keye, Zhang, Yukai, Fan, Mingming
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Wang, Mengyang
Yu, Keye
Zhang, Yukai
Fan, Mingming
author_facet Wang, Mengyang
Yu, Keye
Zhang, Yukai
Fan, Mingming
contents Companion robots hold immense potential in providing emotional support to older adults in the rapidly aging world. However, questions have been raised regarding whether having a robotic companion benefits healthy older adults, how they perceive the value of companion robots, and what their relationship with companion robots would be like. To understand healthy older adults' perceptions, attitudes, and relationships toward companion robots, we conducted multiple focus groups with eighteen retirees. Our findings underscore the social context encountered by older adults in China and reveal the mismatch between the current value proposition of companion robots and healthy older adults' needs. We further identify factors influencing the adoption of robotic companionship, which include individuals' self-disclosure tendencies, quality of companionship, differentiated value, and seamless collaboration with aging-in-community infrastructure and services.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2410_12205
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Challenges in Adopting Companion Robots: An Exploratory Study of Robotic Companionship Conducted with Chinese Retirees
Wang, Mengyang
Yu, Keye
Zhang, Yukai
Fan, Mingming
Human-Computer Interaction
Companion robots hold immense potential in providing emotional support to older adults in the rapidly aging world. However, questions have been raised regarding whether having a robotic companion benefits healthy older adults, how they perceive the value of companion robots, and what their relationship with companion robots would be like. To understand healthy older adults' perceptions, attitudes, and relationships toward companion robots, we conducted multiple focus groups with eighteen retirees. Our findings underscore the social context encountered by older adults in China and reveal the mismatch between the current value proposition of companion robots and healthy older adults' needs. We further identify factors influencing the adoption of robotic companionship, which include individuals' self-disclosure tendencies, quality of companionship, differentiated value, and seamless collaboration with aging-in-community infrastructure and services.
title Challenges in Adopting Companion Robots: An Exploratory Study of Robotic Companionship Conducted with Chinese Retirees
topic Human-Computer Interaction
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.12205