Assembling human empathy towards care robots: The human labor of robot sociality

Kerruish, Erika

doi:10.1016/j.emospa.2021.100840

Cited by 12 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…In theory, AI technologies cannot feel or express genuine empathy, hence the term empathy* has been suggested as a term to differentiate real empathy from artificial empathy ( Montemayor et al, 2021 ). Nonetheless, empathy display and relational behavior are significant research themes in dialog systems development and robotics ( Kennedy et al, 2012 ; Liu and Sundar, 2018 ; Pepito et al, 2020 ; Kerruish, 2021 ). Studies with patients have shown that most people prefer medical assistant chatbots that mimic empathy ( Amini et al, 2013 ; Liu and Sundar, 2018 ; Daher et al, 2020 ), this is particularly true for users who are initially skeptical about machines possessing social cognitive capabilities.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…← Robot/artificial emotional response behaviours (artificial empathy) (Kennedy et al, 2012;Pepito et al, 2020;Kerruish, 2021;Montemayor et al, 2021) ← Empathetic chatbots (Amini et al, 2013;Liu and Sundar, 2018;Daher et al, 2020) ← Empathetic medical conversations (Yun et al, 2021) ← Web app that provides cancer disease related information to patients (Papadakos et al, 2017) ← AI-generated diagnosis information for radiology patients (Zhang et al, 2021) Health coaching (11 articles) ← Virtual health coaches (Kennedy et al, 2012;Bevilacqua et al, 2020), smoking cessation (He et al, 2022), weight-loss (Stein and Brooks, 2017), self-management of depression (Inkster et al, 2018), and chronic disease self-management (Hernandez, 2019) ← Therapeutic chatbots for mental health (Lee et al, 2019;Valtolina and Hu, 2021) ← Automated healthcare quality assessment e.g., sentiment analysis of patient feedback from diverse groups of service users (Doing- Harris et al, 2017;Rahim et al, 2021) ← Automated analysis of patient and family feedback captured by interactive patient care technology in hospitals (Clavelle et al, 2019) ← Automated analysis of online health communities to inform policy for patient self-care (Panzarasa et al, 2020) ← Automated evaluation of psychotherapy services linked to training, supervision, and quality assurance (Flemotomos et al, 2022;Xiao et al, 2015).…”

Section: Empathetic Awareness (15 Articles)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A study of service robots for people with disabilities showed that they perceive robots as being able to stimulate and regulate emotions 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.971044 by mimicking cognitive and behavioral empathy, but unable to express affective and moral empathy, which they felt was essential for the feeling of "being cared for" (Kipnis et al, 2022). Analysis of human empathy toward a therapeutic zoomorphic robot (Paro) and a health care support robot (Care-O-Bot) draws attention to how the cultivation of user empathy toward robots influences patient sociality and relational interactions between human care providers (Kerruish, 2021).…”

Section: Empathetic Response and Relational Behavior (12 Articles)mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Artificial intelligence technologies and compassion in healthcare: A systematic scoping review

et al. 2023

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BackgroundAdvances in artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, together with the availability of big data in society, creates uncertainties about how these developments will affect healthcare systems worldwide. Compassion is essential for high-quality healthcare and research shows how prosocial caring behaviors benefit human health and societies. However, the possible association between AI technologies and compassion is under conceptualized and underexplored.ObjectivesThe aim of this scoping review is to provide a comprehensive depth and a balanced perspective of the emerging topic of AI technologies and compassion, to inform future research and practice. The review questions were: How is compassion discussed in relation to AI technologies in healthcare? How are AI technologies being used to enhance compassion in healthcare? What are the gaps in current knowledge and unexplored potential? What are the key areas where AI technologies could support compassion in healthcare?Materials and methodsA systematic scoping review following five steps of Joanna Briggs Institute methodology. Presentation of the scoping review conforms with PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews). Eligibility criteria were defined according to 3 concept constructs (AI technologies, compassion, healthcare) developed from the literature and informed by medical subject headings (MeSH) and key words for the electronic searches. Sources of evidence were Web of Science and PubMed databases, articles published in English language 2011–2022. Articles were screened by title/abstract using inclusion/exclusion criteria. Data extracted (author, date of publication, type of article, aim/context of healthcare, key relevant findings, country) was charted using data tables. Thematic analysis used an inductive-deductive approach to generate code categories from the review questions and the data. A multidisciplinary team assessed themes for resonance and relevance to research and practice.ResultsSearches identified 3,124 articles. A total of 197 were included after screening. The number of articles has increased over 10 years (2011, n = 1 to 2021, n = 47 and from Jan–Aug 2022 n = 35 articles). Overarching themes related to the review questions were: (1) Developments and debates (7 themes) Concerns about AI ethics, healthcare jobs, and loss of empathy; Human-centered design of AI technologies for healthcare; Optimistic speculation AI technologies will address care gaps; Interrogation of what it means to be human and to care; Recognition of future potential for patient monitoring, virtual proximity, and access to healthcare; Calls for curricula development and healthcare professional education; Implementation of AI applications to enhance health and wellbeing of the healthcare workforce. (2) How AI technologies enhance compassion (10 themes) Empathetic awareness; Empathetic response and relational behavior; Communication skills; Health coaching; Therapeutic interventions; Moral development learning; Clinical knowledge and clinical assessment; Healthcare quality assessment; Therapeutic bond and therapeutic alliance; Providing health information and advice. (3) Gaps in knowledge (4 themes) Educational effectiveness of AI-assisted learning; Patient diversity and AI technologies; Implementation of AI technologies in education and practice settings; Safety and clinical effectiveness of AI technologies. (4) Key areas for development (3 themes) Enriching education, learning and clinical practice; Extending healing spaces; Enhancing healing relationships.ConclusionThere is an association between AI technologies and compassion in healthcare and interest in this association has grown internationally over the last decade. In a range of healthcare contexts, AI technologies are being used to enhance empathetic awareness; empathetic response and relational behavior; communication skills; health coaching; therapeutic interventions; moral development learning; clinical knowledge and clinical assessment; healthcare quality assessment; therapeutic bond and therapeutic alliance; and to provide health information and advice. The findings inform a reconceptualization of compassion as a human-AI system of intelligent caring comprising six elements: (1) Awareness of suffering (e.g., pain, distress, risk, disadvantage); (2) Understanding the suffering (significance, context, rights, responsibilities etc.); (3) Connecting with the suffering (e.g., verbal, physical, signs and symbols); (4) Making a judgment about the suffering (the need to act); (5) Responding with an intention to alleviate the suffering; (6) Attention to the effect and outcomes of the response. These elements can operate at an individual (human or machine) and collective systems level (healthcare organizations or systems) as a cyclical system to alleviate different types of suffering. New and novel approaches to human-AI intelligent caring could enrich education, learning, and clinical practice; extend healing spaces; and enhance healing relationships.ImplicationsIn a complex adaptive system such as healthcare, human-AI intelligent caring will need to be implemented, not as an ideology, but through strategic choices, incentives, regulation, professional education, and training, as well as through joined up thinking about human-AI intelligent caring. Research funders can encourage research and development into the topic of AI technologies and compassion as a system of human-AI intelligent caring. Educators, technologists, and health professionals can inform themselves about the system of human-AI intelligent caring.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Empathetic Awareness (15 Articles)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Empathetic Response and Relational Behavior (12 Articles)mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Artificial intelligence technologies and compassion in healthcare: A systematic scoping review

et al. 2023

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“…However, a quick review of the research in the domain of AI and machine learning from 2012 till date foregrounds a contrasting research narrative. Researchers of robotics have been emphasizing the significance of emotional computing for developing affective robots with real human-like intelligence (Wieseke et al 2012 ; Destephe et al 2013 ; Kirandziska et al 2014 ; Kugurakora et al 2015 ; Gomez-Martinez et al 2018 ; Spatola and Wudarczyk 2021 ; Corina Pelau et al 2021 ; Kerruish 2021 ). Disciplines such as psychology, biology, anthropology, neuroscience, social science, robotics, and computer science are referred to design algorithmic codes for simulating human-like emotional intelligence.…”

Section: Emotional Computing and Posthuman Affectmentioning

confidence: 99%

Disposable culture, posthuman affect, and artificial human in Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the Sun (2021)

Sahu

Karmakar

2022

AI & Soc

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Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel Klara and the Sun (2021) philosophizes on how in the current technologically saturated culture, the gradual evolution of the empathetic humanoids has, on one hand, problematized our normative notions of cognitive and affective categories, and on the other, has triggered an order of emotional uncanniness due to our reliance on hyperreal real objects for receiving solace and companionship. The novel may be conceived to be a commentary on the emerging discourse in the domain of cognitive and emotional computing that aspires to transform the inner life and social relationships of the human community. The novelty of the paper lies in its ability to showcase how Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the Sun (2021) creates a rupture in the existing research and literary narrative by critiquing the theoretical underpinnings of emotional computing that optimistically foresees a future where simulated empathetic minds will be able to decode the complexities of the human emotions. It discusses how literature turns into an apt tool to reflect on the limitations of the programmed machines to decode the elusiveness of the human mind that defies the one-to-one correlation between words, multiple connotations, and their underlying emotions. Through the lenses of the fictional narrative, the paper foregrounds how the concept of the social robot designed to offer empathy, care, and companionship turns into a failed project. The paper draws on critical perspectives from disposability theory, posthuman affect, and immaterial bodies to foreground the noncodified feature of affective experientialities that emerge as a result of the interface between humans and nonanimate beings.

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“…Dautenhahn (1995) emphasized this point in one of the early studies on robotics and stated that they should know the effect of robotic behavior on others, how others judge robotic behavior, and how they want the robot to behave. Studies on human-robot interaction analyzed the empathy in two dimensions: "human to robot" and "robot to human" (Kerruish, 2021;Paiva et al, 2004;Nomura, 2018). Studies conducted with children and adults and investigated the human-to-robot dimension revealed that humans were empathic towards the robots (Carlson et al, 2019;Darling et al, 2015;Mattiasi et al, 2019;Riek et al, 2009;Suzuki et al, 2015, Seo et al, 2018Küster et al, 2020).…”

Section: Social Robots and Empathy: Can Robots Empathize?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Could Robots Empatize? A Review on The Employment of Social Robots in Mental Healthcare

Gültekin

2022

Türk Psikolojik Danışma Ve Rehberlik Dergisi

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The advances in artificial intelligence and robotics began to transform business and human relations. The employment of robots in health, education, entertainment and rehabilitation as well as industries introduced the concept of "social robots". Although there is no consensus on the definition of the concept, robots with some degree of autonomy and could conduct meaningful social interactions with humans are considered social robots. Studies have been conducted on the employment of social robots in mental health services. Studies have been conducted on the employment of social robots in mental health services. The effectiveness of social robots in the treatment of anxiety, stress, depression, anger, and eating disorders, especially dementia and autism spectrum disorder, has also been investigated. The question of “can robots empathize” is a significant topic in research that focus on human-robot interactions. Robotic empathy studies were conducted with two dimensions of human empathy for robots and robot empathy for humans and led to various philosophical and ethical discussions. Some argued that robot-human interaction leads to new opportunities in mental health services, while others criticized the use of robots since it could increase human solitude, blur the line between reality and virtuality perceptions and the distinction between ontological categories. The present literature review aimed to discuss the concepts of artificial intelligence, robots, and social robots, provide information about the studies on the employment of social robots in mental healthcare, and address the studies and views based on the question "can social robots empathize?"

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Assembling human empathy towards care robots: The human labor of robot sociality

Cited by 12 publications

References 42 publications

Artificial intelligence technologies and compassion in healthcare: A systematic scoping review

Artificial intelligence technologies and compassion in healthcare: A systematic scoping review

Disposable culture, posthuman affect, and artificial human in Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the Sun (2021)

Could Robots Empatize? A Review on The Employment of Social Robots in Mental Healthcare

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