Effects of Polite Behaviors Expressed by Robots: A Psychological Experiment in Japan

Abstract

A psychological experiment was conducted to straightforwardly investigate the effects of polite behaviors expressed by robots in Japan, using a small-sized humanoid robot that performed four types of behaviors with voice task instructions. Results of the experiment suggested that the subjects who experienced “deep bowing” motion of the robot felt it more extrovert than those who experienced “just standing” motion. Subjects who experienced “lying” motion of the robot felt the robot less polite than those who experienced the other motions. Female subjects more strongly feeling the robot extrovert replied for the task instruction from the robot faster, although no such trend was found in the male subjects. However, the male subjects who did not perform the task felt the robot less polite than the male subjects who performed the task and the female subjects who did not perform the task.