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About

Sofia Serholt is a prominent researcher specializing in human-robot interaction, educational robotics, and the ethical dimensions of deploying social robots in learning environments. Her work sits at a compelling intersection of technology, pedagogy, and ethics, making her a distinctive voice in the field of child-robot interaction. Serholt's research has significantly advanced our understanding of how children engage with robotic tutors in real classroom settings. Her longitudinal investigations into interaction breakdowns between children and robots — garnering over 80 citations — reveal the practical challenges of integrating social robots into education, while her widely cited 2016 paper on ethical tensions in classroom robotics (156 citations) has become essential reading for educators and policymakers navigating this emerging landscape. Her multi-country interview studies examining teachers' perspectives on empathic robotic tutors helped shape the conversation around stakeholder inclusion in educational technology design. A recurring theme throughout Serholt's work is the importance of empathy — both human and artificial — in fostering meaningful learning relationships. Her contributions to the design and evaluation of empathic robotic tutors, alongside her editorial leadership on critical robotics research, underscore her commitment to ensuring that technological innovation is guided by rigorous ethical reflection and genuine human needs.