A team of robotics, computer scientists and psychiatrists from the University of Cambridge conducted a study on 28 children aged 8 to 13. The child-sized humanoid robot administered a series of standardized psychological questionnaires to assess each participant’s mental health.
Children willingly trusted the robot, in some cases sharing information with the robot that they had not yet shared using the standard method of assessment – online or face-to-face. This is the first time that robots have been used to assess children’s mental health.
Although not intended to replace professional mental health care, the researchers say the robots could be a useful addition to traditional mental health assessment methods. The results were presented at the 31st IEEE International Robot-Human Interactive Communication Conference in Naples on 1 September.
Source: Ferra
