Technological Nature: Adaptation and the Future of Human Life (MIT Press) by Peter H. Kahn Jr

Author:Peter H. Kahn Jr.
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Tags: Subject Value
ISBN: 9780262113229
Publisher: MIT Press
Published: 2011-02-25T06:00:00+00:00

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Robotic Dogs in the Lives of Preschool Children

We learned in the previous chapter that AIBO, the robotic dog, can be a compelling social technology in the lives of adults. In that study, members of discussion forums often conceptualized AIBO in three social ways. They viewed AIBO as having a lifelike biology (e.g., “I do indeed treat him [AIBO] as if he were alive”). They viewed AIBO as having mental states (e.g., “my dog [AIBO] would get angry when my boyfriend would talk to him”). And they viewed AIBO as being capable of engaging in social rapport with humans (e.g., “I do view him [AIBO] as a companion”).

But what about children? Do children interact with and conceptualize AIBO as a social and perhaps moral entity? Or might children simply project onto AIBO social and perhaps moral qualities, and engage with AIBO in imaginative play, as they might a stuffed animal? How would one distinguish the difference between children’s imaginative play and real convictions? These questions structured the current study my colleagues and I conducted on robotic dogs in the lives of preschool children (Kahn et al. 2006).

Eighty children participated in this study, equally divided between two age groups, 34–50 months and 58–74 months. There were equal numbers of girls and boys in each age group. We used two main artifacts: AIBO (Sony’s 210 version) and a stuffed dog. The stuffed dog was roughly the same size as AIBO and made of a soft-plush fabric. Both AIBO and stuffed dog were black-hued in color. Each child participated in an individual session lasting approximately 45 minutes. One part of the session involved an interactive period with AIBO, and another part an interactive period with the stuffed dog (which we called Shanti). If the child’s attention span so required, the 45-minute session was broken up into two periods on different days. The presentation order of the two artifacts was counterbalanced. During the session, a bright pink ball, a dog toy, and a dog biscuit were also used as props. With each artifact (AIBO or the stuffed dog), the child first engaged in a short (2–3 minute) unstructured introductory “play” period. At the start of this play period, the interviewer modeled petting the artifact so that the child would know that AIBO and the stuffed dog are the sort of things that can be touched. After the short unstructured play period, the child was allowed to continue to play with the artifact while being engaged in a semistructured interview. After the interview, every child completed a card sort task. Thus, during the session, three sources of data were collected: a semistructured interview about both artifacts, observations of children’s behavioral interactions with both artifacts, and a card sort task.

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