Effects of interaction with an animal-type therapy robot on attentional control, emotional regulation, and resilience

Abstract

This study examined how interacting with an animal-type therapy robot improved executive attention, emotional regulation, and resilience. We divided the participants (N=41) into the animal-robot group that interacted with a therapy robot named Paro (n=14), the human-robot group that interacted with a human-type robot named Robi (n=12), and a control group that did not interact with a robot (n=15). The participants in the animal and human-robot groups interacted with the robots eight times in 10 weeks. The participants also completed scales assessing executive attention and emotional regulation before and after these interactions and a scale assessing resilience during the interaction. The results showed that the attentional control score, a subscale of executive attention, increased significantly in the post-interaction compared to the pre-interaction period. The interaction between groups and periods showed that emotional regulation improved in the animal-type robot group after the interaction. However, there was no significant difference in resilience scores between the groups. These results indicate that interacting with the animal-type therapy robot PARO enhanced emotional regulation.