Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Case Report : Implications of Doing Research on Socially Assistive Robots in Real Homes

Frennert, Susanne LU orcid ; Eftring, Håkan LU and Östlund, Britt LU (2017) In International Journal of Social Robotics 9(3). p.401-415
Abstract

The current paper addresses the implications of doing research on socially assistive robots in real homes. In contrast to laboratory studies, studies of robots in their intended natural environments can provide insights into people’s experiences of robots, and if and how a robot becomes embedded and used in people’s everyday life. However, moving robots out of the lab and into real life environments poses several challenges. Laboratory methods mainly focus on cause-and-effect relations between independent and dependent variables, while researchers who are conducting studies in real homes have much less control. In home trials, researchers need to decide what kind of data is obtainable and available. In real homes, researchers face... (More)

The current paper addresses the implications of doing research on socially assistive robots in real homes. In contrast to laboratory studies, studies of robots in their intended natural environments can provide insights into people’s experiences of robots, and if and how a robot becomes embedded and used in people’s everyday life. However, moving robots out of the lab and into real life environments poses several challenges. Laboratory methods mainly focus on cause-and-effect relations between independent and dependent variables, while researchers who are conducting studies in real homes have much less control. In home trials, researchers need to decide what kind of data is obtainable and available. In real homes, researchers face unique challenges that require unique and pragmatic approaches. Any single study conducted in a real home is likely to have methodological limitations. Therefore, several different studies using different robots and methods are needed before the results can be converged in order to reach conclusions that are convincingly supported. This paper is an effort to provide such a report on a specific empirical case and converging findings from other studies. The goal is to provide an account of the research challenges and opportunities encountered when introducing a robot into its intended practice: the homes of older people. The aim is to give enough details for other researchers to critically examine and systematically build on the insights and findings presented.

(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Case report, Everyday life, Older people, Science and technology studies, Social robots
in
International Journal of Social Robotics
volume
9
issue
3
pages
15 pages
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • scopus:85021651325
  • wos:000404770400007
ISSN
1875-4791
DOI
10.1007/s12369-017-0396-9
project
HOBBIT - The Mutual Care Robot
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
e6c9e7de-796d-4560-975c-d20aeaf4899a
date added to LUP
2017-07-19 08:58:08
date last changed
2024-03-31 13:27:15
@article{e6c9e7de-796d-4560-975c-d20aeaf4899a,
  abstract     = {{<p>The current paper addresses the implications of doing research on socially assistive robots in real homes. In contrast to laboratory studies, studies of robots in their intended natural environments can provide insights into people’s experiences of robots, and if and how a robot becomes embedded and used in people’s everyday life. However, moving robots out of the lab and into real life environments poses several challenges. Laboratory methods mainly focus on cause-and-effect relations between independent and dependent variables, while researchers who are conducting studies in real homes have much less control. In home trials, researchers need to decide what kind of data is obtainable and available. In real homes, researchers face unique challenges that require unique and pragmatic approaches. Any single study conducted in a real home is likely to have methodological limitations. Therefore, several different studies using different robots and methods are needed before the results can be converged in order to reach conclusions that are convincingly supported. This paper is an effort to provide such a report on a specific empirical case and converging findings from other studies. The goal is to provide an account of the research challenges and opportunities encountered when introducing a robot into its intended practice: the homes of older people. The aim is to give enough details for other researchers to critically examine and systematically build on the insights and findings presented.</p>}},
  author       = {{Frennert, Susanne and Eftring, Håkan and Östlund, Britt}},
  issn         = {{1875-4791}},
  keywords     = {{Case report; Everyday life; Older people; Science and technology studies; Social robots}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{06}},
  number       = {{3}},
  pages        = {{401--415}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{International Journal of Social Robotics}},
  title        = {{Case Report : Implications of Doing Research on Socially Assistive Robots in Real Homes}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12369-017-0396-9}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s12369-017-0396-9}},
  volume       = {{9}},
  year         = {{2017}},
}