Papers
12
Total Citations
1,336
H-Index
10
About
Kensuke Kato is a pioneering researcher in human-robot interaction psychology, best known for developing foundational psychometric tools that measure how humans emotionally and cognitively respond to robots. His most significant contribution is the creation of the **Negative Attitudes toward Robots Scale (NARS)** and companion anxiety measurement instruments, introduced in a landmark cluster of 2006 publications that have collectively garnered nearly 700 citations. These scales gave the robotics research community rigorous, standardized methods for quantifying the psychological barriers that can inhibit meaningful human-robot engagement — tools that remain widely used today. Kato extended this work in 2008 by demonstrating that psychological attitudes and anxiety measurably predict actual human behavior during robot interactions, bridging psychometrics and practical robotics design with over 400 citations. His cross-cultural investigations, comparing robot assumptions across Japan, Korea, and the United States, further broadened the field's understanding of how cultural context shapes social acceptance of humanoid and animal-type robots. Work on age differences in robot perception and the role of emotional interaction concerns reflects his commitment to understanding diverse user populations. Altogether, Kato's research has profoundly shaped how designers and researchers approach socially acceptable, human-centered robotics development.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1Measurement of negative attitudes toward robots465 citations · 2006
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- 3Measurement of Anxiety toward Robots183 citations · 2006
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- 5Negative Attitudes toward Robots Scale41 citations · 2006
- 6Attitudes toward robots and factors influencing them33 citations · 2011
- 7Age differences and images of robots32 citations · 2009
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