PopUp Robots-Robot says please: Current research in automation etiquette at ODU

The speaker this month will be Alex Proaps

Etiquette refers to the wide range of expectations humans may have for customary social behavior within particular groups. These social “nicities” or “norms” are important in many human-human social interactions, but we now know etiquette is also important in human-technology interactions, across a wide range of tasks and situations. Designing technology to be more human-like and more polite during communication can be a double edged sword. On the one hand, technology designed to be more polite often predicts user acceptance and trust. Conversely, user trust and acceptance is drastically reduced if technology is designed to be less polite (more abrupt, interrupting, demanding). On the other hand, designing technology with a high level of etiquette may lead users to apply unrealistic (human-like) qualities and expectations to the automation, such as intent or personality, which can lead to a variety of decision-making errors.

Alex will discuss overall definitions of automation etiquette, provide a brief overview of early psychological theories of human-automation communication, and describe some ongoing research projects at ODU. In particular, she will share information about the impact of culture and robot etiquette on user compliance with robotic police, the impact of virtual instructor etiquette on surgical student learning outcomes, and the impact of teammate agency (human or automated teammate) on trust, compliance, and social presence.

Alex is a freelance User Experience research consultant. She also works as a research scientist and instructor at ODU. Alex has a formal background in Human Factors Psychology - she studies the ways in which human cognitive abilities and limitations (e.g., perception, decision making, memory, stress, motivation, habit formation) impact our relationships with technology. Her main research interests involve human-robot interaction and training in virtual environments. She is passionate about bridging the gap between academia and industry and advocates for human-centered design practices at every stage of a system's life cycle. You can reach out to her on Twitter @alexproaps.