Researchers from Italy have shown that the view of a human-like robot affects the decision-making process by people. The article of scientists was published in the journal Science Robotics.
Researchers from the Italian Institute of Technologies asked 40 volunteers to play with the icub anthropomorphic robot in the game “Hawks and Pigeons” – one of the simplest models of games theory. In its course, scientists evaluated the behavior of the participants in the experiment, while simultaneously measuring their neural activity with the help of electroencephalography.
researchers found that when Icub looked into the eyes of the participants during their decisions, they reacted slower compared to the situation when he looked to the side. In addition, scientists have revealed an increase in the capacities of the body of the alpha rhythm of the brain associated with the visual contact and decision-making. According to scientists, this effect is explained by the fact that when the robot and man exchange looks, the latter requires more mental efforts – in order to assume the next step of the robot or to force themselves to stop being distracted. The view of the robot “hacks” the sociocognizative mechanisms of the brain, causing reacting to it as a subject of society.
Researchers hope that their observations will help create robots with the most appropriate behavior for one purpose.