How Does Children’s Anthropomorphism of a Social Robot Develop Over Time? A Six-Wave Panel Study

Abstract

Research on children’s anthropomorphism of social robots is mostly cross-sectional and based on a single measurement. However, because social robots are new type of technology with which children have little experience, children’s initial responses to social robots may be biased by a novelty effect. Accordingly, a single measurement of anthropomorphism may not accurately reflect how children anthropomorphize social robots over time. Thus, we used data from a six-wave panel study to investigate longitudinal changes in 8- to 9-year-old children’s anthropomorphism of a social robot. Latent class growth analyses revealed that anthropomorphism peaked after the first interaction with the social robot, remained stable for a brief period of time, and then decreased. Moreover, two distinct longitudinal trajectories of anthropomorphism could be identified: one with moderate to high anthropomorphism and one with low to moderate anthropomorphism. Previous media exposure to non-fictional robots increased the probability that children experienced higher levels of anthropomorphism.