Rapport Formation between Children and a Social Robot through the Identity of a Social Robot*

Abstract

Many people buy social robots out of curiosity, but they don’t use them continuously due to technical limitations. Rapport, an emotional relationship between humans and social robots, can be thought as a way to overcome the limitations for continuous use. The purpose of this study is to examine how the identity of a social robot affects the rapport formation between children and a social robot. Two studies were conducted to verify rapport formation. One was an experiment in which a conversation was conducted with 8 children, and the other was an online survey with 45 children to verify their personal connection to a social robot. Two studies were conducted in an experimental group interacting with a social robot with an identity, and a control group interacting with a social robot without an identity. In the first experiment, there was no significant difference between the two groups. However, in the second online survey, significant differences were found between them. The experimental group felt stronger personal connection to the social robot than the control group, and this tendency was more conspicuous among girls than boys. This study is significant because it confirmed that the identity of a social robot can have a positive effect on children’s rapport with social robots.