Impression of the Learner when a Robot Negotiates the Number of Solved Problems

Abstract

In recent years, there has been a lot of attention paid to educational support robots. In conventional educational support robots, the number of problems to be answered by the learner (hereafter referred to as ”the number of solved problems”) is determined by the system. As a result, the collaborative learning with conventional robots does not create a spontaneous learning environment for the learner. In order to improve this situation, the Problems-Number Negotiation Method has been proposed. It has been reported that a robot using the Problems-Number Negotiation Method improves the number of solved problems during short-term learning with the robot without decreasing the impression of the robot. However, the effect of the impression on long-term learning with a robot using the Problems-Number Negotiation Method has not been verified. In this study, we investigate the effect of long-term learning with a robot using the Problems-Number Negotiation Method on learners’ impression of the robot by conducting an experiment with university students. The experimental results showed that the robot that negotiates the number of questions to be answered through conversation gives the same impression as a conventional robot.