Although the robots are not designed to replace medical experts, researchers believe they could be a valuable supplement to mental health screening methods.
A study suggests that robots could assist to diagnose mental health disorders in children.
Researchers from Cambridge University administered a series of surveys to 28 youngsters aged eight to thirteen using a humanoid robot sized for children.
The research revealed that the children were willing to confide in the robot, providing details that they had not before divulged via online or in-person questionnaires.
Although the robots are not designed to replace mental health help, researchers believe they could be a beneficial supplement to mental health screening methods.
The study’s first author, doctoral student Nida Itrat Abbasi, stated: “Because the robot we employ is child-sized and non-threatening, children may view it as a confidante; they believe they will not be punished if they share secrets with it.
Other researchers have shown that youngsters are more willing to disclose confidential information to a robot than to an adult, such as the fact that they are being bullied.
Each child enjoyed a 45-minute, one-on-one session with a 60-centimeter-tall humanoid Nao robot.
The children interacted with the robot by speaking to it or touching its hands and feet. During the session, additional sensors monitored their heart rate, head, and eye movements.
Robots engage children more than screens.
Professor Hatice Gunes, director of the Affective Intelligence and Robotics Laboratory at the Department of Computer Science and Technology at the University of Cambridge, has been researching how socially supportive robots might be utilized as mental health coaches for adults.
In recent years, she has also investigated their potential benefits for youngsters.
She claimed that children are “very tactile” and “attracted to technology.”
If they are utilizing an on-screen tool, they are disconnected from the physical world.
She said, “But robots are ideal because they exist in the physical world; they’re more engaging, so children are more involved.”
