Papers
28
Total Citations
670
H-Index
11
About
Guy Laban is a leading researcher at the intersection of human-robot interaction and clinical psychology, whose work investigates how social robots can support mental health and emotional well-being. His research focuses on understanding what makes robots “social,” and how they can be deployed to encourage self-disclosure—a key behavior for psychological health. Laban’s major contributions include demonstrating that people are willing to share intimate emotions with robots over time, and that such interactions can help individuals cope with distress. His widely cited review, *What Makes a Robot Social?* (245 citations), provides a foundational framework for the field. In studies with informal caregivers and individuals with PTSD, Laban has shown that social robots can elicit rich, sustained disclosures, with one longitudinal study (74 citations) revealing that people build genuine relationships with robots across weeks. His work has been recognized for its practical impact, including interventions that help caregivers manage emotional burden. With over 500 total citations and a growing body of work on emotion-driven disclosure, Laban is shaping how we think about robots as therapeutic partners, not just tools.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2Tell me more! Assessing interactions with social robots from speech80 citations · 2020
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- 6Informal Caregivers Disclose Increasingly More to a Social Robot Over Time26 citations · 2022
- 7Opening Up to Social Robots: How Emotions Drive Self-Disclosure Behavior24 citations · 2023
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- 9Social robot advisors: effects of robot judgmental fallacies and context16 citations · 2022
- 10Let's Talk About It! Subjective and Objective Disclosures to Social Robots15 citations · 2020