People are faster at understanding human actions than robotic movements – study

4 August 2022, 08:24

Robots drawing
Robots replacing employees and artificial intelligent robot workers taking traditional jobs to increase efficiency and productivity in the future with. Picture: PA

Researchers say the study highlights potential challenges for a future where robots are incorporated more into our daily lives.

A new study suggesting people are faster at understanding human actions than robotic movements highlights potential challenges for a future where robots are incorporated more into our daily lives, researchers have said.

Over a series of six experiments, scientists investigated if people can understand robots’ intentions as they do those of humans.

The team compared people’s ability to ascribe intentions to humans, humanoid robots, and non-human-like animated objects by investigating how easily people understood the simple social cue of a gaze.

Psychologists led by the University of Hull explored whether people apply the same social rules to a robot’s actions as they do to humans’, asking participants to predict what a human or a robot would do by observing their gaze.

Robots playing chess
The study looked at interpretations of gaze (Alamy)

The results showed that people were faster to infer the mental content of human agents compared to robotic agents, suggesting that people process human actions differently to robotic actions.

Dr Emmanuele Tidoni, a lecturer in psychology at the University of Hull and the lead author of the report, explained: “The results of our research suggest that people are better at identifying what a human – rather than a robot – would do.

“Specifically, we found that people interpret the meaning of human actions faster than non-human actions.

“We tested how easily people understand the simple social cue of a gaze – humans predict other people’s behaviour by looking at their eyes.

“For example, if you are in a restaurant, you can easily guess if the waiter is ready to take your order by checking where they are looking.

Robotics
Study leaders pointed out that society is already becoming more technological (Alamy)

“Another example is when we see a person looking at a bottle of water – we may easily guess the person is thirsty. However, such guesses may not be so automatic when we see robots – we wouldn’t think a robot is thirsty if it looks at a water bottle.”

The team says their research has implications for the future and the potential challenges we may face as robots are incorporated more into our homes or at work.

Dr Tidoni added: “Society is getting more and more technological. Less than 20 years ago, we saw the introduction of portable devices like smartphones that have radically changed how we communicate and interact with others, and how we perceive technology.

“Investigating how people interpret actions performed by a machine is crucial to improving future interactions between humans and robots.

“Our results suggest that people may benefit from additional information to understand what actions robots are doing. This opens new ideas to use psychological theories to find solutions to improve the development of a fast and growing market, such as the human–robot interaction.”

The study, “Human but not robotic gaze facilitates prediction”, was published in iScience.

By Press Association

More Technology News

See more More Technology News

AI warning

Essays written with ChatGPT feature repetition of words and ideas – study

A broadband router

Big four broadband firms beaten by smaller rivals in latest Which? survey

A person pressing on the Tik Tok logo on the screen of a smartphone

TikTok to launch online election centres to counter misinformation

A person using a laptop

Up to eight million UK jobs at risk from AI, report says

Smartphone showing apps

One in six adolescents have experienced cyberbullying, global study finds

An Uber Eats driver

Uber Eats driver wins payout over discriminatory facial recognition checks

Rishi Sunak visits Cumbria

Sunak says UK ‘more robust’ on China than most allies

Chinese President state visit – Preparations

Minister calls China ‘security threat’ after UK and US blame Beijing for hacking

China

UK and US accuse China of ‘malicious’ global cyber attacks

A hand on a laptop

Tougher action needed to combat copycat banking websites, says Which?

Dowden

Dowden guarantees UK elections will be safe from Chinese cyber attacks

A woman’s hand pressing a key of a laptop keyboard

Cyber security agency says China behind ‘malicious’ cyber attacks on UK

A young girl uses the TikTok app on a smartphone

TikTok Youth Council holds first meetings on better online safety for teenagers

Margrethe Vestager

EU opens competition investigations into Apple, Google and Meta

Social Media Stock

Some parents coming to regard online harassment of girls as ‘normal’ – report

historisches Werbeplakat fuer den Spielfilm “Terminator Jugdement Day” mit Arnold Schwarzenegger, Berlin.

Hollywood has ‘helped to fan flames of fear about AI’, peers hear