The Effect of Asset Degradation on Trust in Swarms: A Reexamination of System-Wide Trust in Human-Swarm Interaction

Abstract

Objective The effects of asset degradation on trust in human-swarm interaction were investigated through the lens of system-wide trust theory. Background Researchers have begun investigating contextual features that shape human interactions with robotic swarms—systems comprising assets that coordinate behavior based on their nearest neighbors. Recent work has begun investigating how human trust toward swarms is affected by asset degradation through the lens of system-wide trust theory, but these studies have been marked by several limitations. Method In an online study, the current work manipulated asset degradation and measured trust-relevant criteria in a within-subjects design and addressed the limitations of past work. Results Controlling for swarm performance (i.e., target acquisition), asset degradation and trust (i.e., reliance intentions) in swarms were negatively related. In addition, as degradation increased, perceptions of swarm cohesion, obstacle avoidance, target acquisition, and terrain exploration efficiency decreased, the latter two of which (coupled with the reliance intentions criterion) support the tenets of system-wide trust theory as well as replicate and extend past work on the effects of asset degradation on trust in swarms. Conclusion Human-swarm interaction is a context in which system-wide trust is relevant, and future work ought to investigate how to calibrate human trust toward swarm systems. Applications Based on these findings, design professionals should prioritize ways to depict swarm performance and system health such that humans do not abandon trust in systems that are still functional yet not over-trust those systems which are indeed performing poorly.

Is the Pull-Down Effect Overstated? An Examination of Trust Propagation Among Fighter Pilots in a High-Fidelity Simulation

“…First, the number of assets to consider from a system-wide trust perspective was relatively small (e.g., four). Although this number of trust referents is consistent with some studies in the system-wide trust literature (e.g., Walliser et al, 2023), others have examined system-wide trust with a much larger number of assets (e.g., swarms with over 200 assets; see Capiola et al, 2022). Secondly, the error-prone CCA in each unreliable trial only evidenced one error.…”

“…Previous research on the pull-down effect suggests that human operators generalize trust across system components, regardless of which components are untrustworthy (Capiola et al, 2021, 2022; Geels-Blair et al, 2013; Keller & Rice, 2009; Walliser et al, 2016, 2023). The system-wide trust effect can result in one faulty component contaminating operators’ perceived trust of other, more reliable system components.…”

“…They found that reliance intentions paralleled degradation levels, and that interestingly, these effects were independent of objective performance. As noted in their study, “That is, participants had lower intentions to rely on the swarm in a future foraging task and perceived the swarm to acquire those targets less effectively and explore the terrain less efficiently, even though asset degradation did not impact target acquisition objectively” (Capiola et al, 2022: 8).…”

“…One example of this is the development of Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA), UAVs that will fly into combat with a fighter pilot lead to perform various tasks. With significant advantages for dangerous, time-consuming, and cost-efficient missions compared to crewed vehicles, researchers and engineers anticipate increasing numbers of UAVs per swarm (Birnbaum et al, 2015; Capiola et al, 2022). UAV swarms (either large or small) require remote supervision from human operators, who utilize the UAVs’ autonomy to manage the workload of multiple pilots.…”

“…System-wide trust effects have also been found in human-swarm interaction studies. Research by Capiola et al (2022) exposed participants to systematic swarm degradations spanning from zero percent to fifty percent. Degraded swarm assets in this study became disconnected from local control laws that governed swarm behavior, essentially operating independently of other swarm assets.…”