An Exploration of the Benefits of an Animallike Robot Companion with More Advanced Touch Interaction Capabilities for Dementia Care

Abstract

Animallike robot companions such as robotic seal Paro are increasingly used in dementia care due to the positive effects that interaction with these robots can have on the well-being of these patients. Touch is one of the most important interaction modalities for patients with dementia and can be a natural way to interact with animallike robots. To advance the development of animallike robots, we explored in what ways people with dementia could benefit from interaction with an animallike robot with more advanced touch recognition capabilities and which touch gestures would be important in their interaction with Paro. In addition, we explored which other target groups might benefit from interaction with animallike robots with more advanced interaction capabilities. In this study, we administered a questionnaire and conducted interviews with two groups of health-care providers who all worked in a geriatric psychiatry department. One group used Paro in their work (i.e., the expert group; n = 5) while the other group had no experience with the use of animallike robot (i.e., the layman group; n = 4). The results showed that health-care providers perceived Paro as an effective intervention to improve the well-being of people with dementia. Examples of usages for Paro that were mentioned were providing distraction, interrupting problematic behaviors, and stimulating communication. Furthermore, the care providers indicated that people with dementia (would) use mostly positive forms of touch and speech to interact with Paro. Paro's auditory responses were criticized because they can overstimulate the patients. In addition, the care providers argued that social interactions with Paro are currently limited and therefore the robot does not meet the needs of a broader audience such as healthy elderly people who still live in their own homes. The development of robot pets with more advanced social capabilities such as touch and speech recognition might result in more intelligent interactions, which could help to better adapt to the needs of people with dementia and could make interactions more interesting for a broader audience. Moreover, the robot's response modalities and its appearance should match the needs of to the target group.

How do “robopets” impact the health and well‐being of residents in care homes? A systematic review of qualitative and quantitative evidence

“…The initial searches identified 2,931 unique papers. Of these, 344 were selected for full‐text review and 19 studies (reported in 27 papers) met the inclusion criteria (see Figure for reasons for exclusion): 10 qualitative studies (Birks, Bodak, Barlas, Harwood, & Pether, ; Chang & Sabanovic, ; Chang, Sabanovic, & Huber, ; Giusti & Marti, ; Gustafsson, Svanberg, & Müllersdorf, ; Iacono & Marti, ; Jung, van der Leij, & Kelders, ; Moyle et al, ; Niemelä, Määttä, & Ylikauppila, ; Pfadenhauer & Dukat, ), 2 mixed methods (randomised trials with qualitative elements), reported across 8 papers (Mervin et al, ; Moyle, ; Moyle, ; Moyle, ; Moyle, ; Moyle, ; Robinson, Macdonald, Kerse, & Broadbent, , ) and seven randomised trials reported in nine papers (Banks, Willoughby, & Banks, ; Joranson, Pedersen, Rokstad, & Ihlebaek, , ; Libin & Cohen‐Mansfield, ; Moyle et al, ; Petersen, Houston, Qin, Tague, & Studley, ; Thodberg, Sorensen, Christensen, et al, ; Thodberg, Sørensen, Videbech, et al, ; Valenti Soler et al, ). An update search, carried out in July 2018 across all databases with de‐duping against those already screened, found no additional included papers or studies.…”

“…All studies were conducted within the past 15 years. Five studies were conducted in the United States (Banks et al, ; Birks et al, ; Chang & Sabanovic, ; Chang et al, ; Petersen et al, ) and four in Australia (Birks et al, ; Moyle et al, , , ), with the remaining studies taking place in Italy (Giusti & Marti, ; Iacono & Marti, ), New Zealand (Robinson, Macdonald, Kerse, & Broadbent, ), Denmark (Thodberg, Sorensen, Christensen, et al, ), Finland (Niemelä et al, ), Germany (Pfadenhauer & Dukat, ), the Netherlands (Jung et al, ), Norway (Joranson, Pedersen, Rokstad, & Ihlebaek, ), Spain (Valenti Soler et al, ) and Sweden (Gustafsson et al, ). The studies involved more than 800 residents (the total number is not clear as two observation studies did not report the number of residents observed) (Chang & Sabanovic, ; Pfadenhauer & Dukat, ).…”

“…Positive behavioural responses were demonstrated through residents touching, petting, stroking, holding and hugging the robopet (Birks et al, ; Iacono & Marti, ; Jung et al, ; Moyle et al, , ). Visual responses (Birks et al, ; Gustafsson et al, ; Moyle et al, ) were often reported in terms of “alertness” and staff involved in a trial perceived that residents appeared to be more alert when they participated in activities with Paro (Moyle et al, ).…”

“…Residents’ responses were observed to change over time; for some residents, their responses changed from negative to positive and could even vary day‐to‐day, and for others, responsiveness decreased over time as the robopet blended into their everyday routines (Birks et al, ; Chang & Sabanovic, ; Moyle et al, , ). Staff perceived that residents’ responses could vary according to whether they were living with dementia and according to the severity of the dementia (Birks et al, ; Chang & Sabanovic, ; Jung et al, ).…”

“…Six studies reported on the aesthetic appeal of the robopets and how they engaged the residents’ visual, tactile and auditory senses (Birks et al, ; Giusti & Marti, ; Gustafsson et al, ; Iacono & Marti, ; Jung et al, ; Robinson et al, ). Paro, in particular, was seen as attractive and residents enjoyed touching, stroking and holding it: “...when they [patients] hold him [Paro] he lifts his head and as a result the whiskers move along their faces which is a very sensitive area for these people, they can feel it clearly” (Jung et al, ). The weight and size of the robopet also impacted on the senses: professional caregivers judged JustoCat to have “natural size and weight” (Gustafsson et al, ), offering a sense of stability and comfort to residents.…”