Skip to search boxSkip to navigationSkip to main content

Embedding ethics in the design of culturally competent socially assistive robots

  • Linda Battistuzzi
    ,
  • Antonio Sgorbissa
    ,
  • Chris Papadopoulos
    ,
  • Irena Papadopoulos
    ,
  • Christina Koulouglioti
  • University of Genoa
    ,
  • Middlesex University
Research Output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding Conference contribution Peer-review

Abstract

Research focusing on the development of socially assistive robots (SARs) for the care of older adults has grown in recent years, prompting a great deal of ethical analysis and reflection on the future of SARs in caring roles. Much of this ethical thinking, however, has taken place far from the settings where technological innovation is practiced. Different frameworks have been proposed to bridge this gap and enable researchers to handle the ethical dimension of technology from within the design and development process, including Value Sensitive Design (VSD). VSD has been defined as a 'theoretically grounded approach to the design of technology that accounts for human values in a principled and comprehensive manner throughout the design process'. Inspired in part by VSD, we have developed a process geared towards embedding ethics at the core of CARESSES, an international multidisciplinary project that aims to design the first culturally competent SAR for the care of older adults. Here we describe that process, which included extracting key ethical concepts from relevant ethical guidelines and applying those concepts to scenarios that describe how the CARESSES robot will interact with individuals belonging to different cultures. This approach highlights the ethical implications of the robot's behavior early in the design process, thus enabling researchers to identify and engage with ethical problems proactively.

Publication Information

Output type

Research Output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding Conference contribution Peer-review

Original language

English

Pages from-to (Number of pages)

Pages 1996-2001

Publication milestones

  • Published - 07/01/2019

Publication status

Published - 07/01/2019

Publisher

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc., United States

ISBN (Print)

9781538680940

External Publication IDs

  • handle.net: 10547/623821
  • Scopus: 85063011150

Host publication title

2018 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS)

Access to documents

Publication metrics