Switch off a Robot, Switch off a Mind?

Abstract

A future world populated by robots is a projection that has long inspired and still inspires science-fiction stories. How to consider these artificial agents is a tremendous question for human society as it highlights an eternal issue "What defines human?" More precisely, "What defines the human mind?" In these two studies, we investigate how individuals' representation of mind may define attitudes towards robots and pro/antisocial behaviours towards them. Also, we evaluate the role of human-robot interaction as a moderator of the above-mentioned process. Our study's results demonstrate that the conceptualization of mind as a function results in more positive attitudes towards robots, and a lesser likelihood of acting negatively toward them. The opposite is true for participants who consider the mind as a human essence. Finally, we show that interaction with a robot seems to level out these differences. These results are discussed in terms of attitudes towards robots measured and implications for future human-robot interaction (HRI).