Human-object interaction, connectedness with nature, and life satisfaction: a cross-sectional study.

Introduction: This study aimed to elucidate the relationship between interactions with everyday objects (e.g., stationery, clothing, and tools) and one's connectedness with nature, environmentally conscious behavior, and life satisfaction. While previous research has predominantly explored the link between awareness of and behavior toward nature with direct education and experience related to the natural environment, we focused on the origins of the objects that surround us, which are inherently derived from nature. Methods: We conducted an online survey with 1,102 Japanese participants, who completed an object-interaction measure assessing the two dimensions of care and learning, and measures of connectedness with nature, pro-environmental behavior, and life satisfaction. Results: Interactions with everyday objects involving care and learning were significantly associated with a sense of connectedness with nature, pro-environmental behavior, and life satisfaction. Discussion: The study highlights that interactions with everyday artifacts are not isolated experiences but are related to broader awareness of and behavior toward the natural world, and with individual life satisfaction. Hence, environmental awareness and actions can extend beyond direct environmental experiences and encompass daily interactions with objects. Future research could examine how cultural factors shape the relationship between human-object interactions, connection with nature, environmentally conscious behavior, and life satisfaction.

Weight Shift Movements of a Social Mediator Robot Make It Being Recognized as Serious and Suppress Anger, Revenge and Avoidance Motivation of the User.

Humans can become aggressive during text messaging. To maintain a healthy interpersonal relationship through text messaging, our negative mental states, such as anger, have to be well-controlled. This paper discusses the use of a handheld social robot deployed as a mediator in text messaging between humans. The robot is equipped with a movable weight inside its body. By controlling the movement of the internal weight during the time when the robot speaks out messages received from a human sender, we hypothesize that the psychological state of a receiver who holds the robot can be affected (for example, he/she will listen to the messages more seriously). In a controlled study (n = 94), in which participants were manipulated to be frustrated by using a context scenario, we studied the effect of three dialogue scripts with/without weight shifts. Results showed that introducing weight shifts together with the robot speech suppressed on average 23% of the user's anger. However, only 3.5% of the anger was suppressed when the weight shifts were not applied. Additionally, in cases where the robot showed empathy to the user in words with weight shifts, the user's revenge urge was successfully reduced by 22%. There was almost no effect confirmed when the weight shifts were not applied. A similar effect was also found in avoidance motivation: 15% of the avoidance motivation was reduced if weight shifts were applied. The reductions in revenge and avoidance motivation are considered important factors for human forgiveness. Therefore, our findings provide experimental evidence that weight shifts can be an effective expression modality for mediator robots, from the perspective of not only suppressing the user's anger but also by inducing forgiveness during messaging.

The CARESSES Randomised Controlled Trial: Exploring the Health-Related Impact of Culturally Competent Artificial Intelligence Embedded Into Socially Assistive Robots and Tested in Older Adult Care Homes.

This trial represents the final stage of the CARESSES project which aimed to develop and evaluate a culturally competent artificial intelligent system embedded into social robots to support older adult wellbeing. A parallel group, single-blind randomised controlled trial was conducted across older adult care homes in England and Japan. Participants randomly allocated to the Experimental Group or Control Group 1 received a Pepper robot for up 18 h across 2 weeks. Two versions of the CARESSES artificial intelligence were tested: a fully culturally competent system (Experimental Group) and a more limited version (Control Group 1). Control Group 2 (Care As Usual) participants did not receive a robot. Quantitative outcomes of interest reported in the current paper were health-related quality of life (SF-36), loneliness (ULS-8), and perceptions of robotic cultural competence (CCATool-Robotics). Thirty-three residents completed all procedures. The difference in SF-36 Emotional Wellbeing scores between Experimental Group and Care As Usual participants over time was significant (F[1] = 6.614, sig = .019, ηp 2 = .258), as was the comparison between Any Robot used and Care As Usual (F[1] = 5.128, sig = .031, ηp 2 = .146). There were no significant changes in SF-36 physical health subscales. ULS-8 loneliness scores slightly improved among Experimental and Control Group 1 participants compared to Care As Usual participants, but this was not significant. This study brings new evidence which cautiously supports the value of culturally competent socially assistive robots in improving the psychological wellbeing of older adults residing in care settings.

The Effect of Social Cohesion on Interest, Usefulness, and Ease of Use of a Driving Assistance System in Older Adults.

This study examined the relationship between social cohesion and the perceived interest in, the usefulness of, and the ease of use of an instructor-based driver assistance system in a sample of older adults. With the aging of the population, the use of technologies to support the driving skills of the elderly is expected, and it is necessary to clarify the conditions under which the elderly will be interested in these advanced technologies. Traditionally, social cohesion has been focused on as a function of instrumental and practical support in the lives of the elderly. Since social cohesion reflects the intention to help each other, it could be an opportunity to provide information on advanced driving skill techniques to older people who are becoming more difficult to drive. As an initial exploration, this study examined whether social cohesion was associated with the interest in, the usefulness of, and the ease of use of an instructor-based driver assistance system in 150 elderly people. The results showed that a greater social cohesion was significantly associated with these evaluations, and that a comprehension of the system also contributed. The possession of a license was significantly associated with interest in the program. These findings are an essential step toward the understanding of the roles of social cohesion and positive perception of advanced technology in older adults.

The CARESSES study protocol: testing and evaluating culturally competent socially assistive robots among older adults residing in long term care homes through a controlled experimental trial.

BACKGROUND: This article describes the design of an intervention study that focuses on whether and to what degree culturally competent social robots can improve health and well-being related outcomes among older adults residing long-term care homes. The trial forms the final stage of the international, multidisciplinary CARESSES project aimed at designing, developing and evaluating culturally competent robots that can assist older people according to the culture of the individual they are supporting. The importance of cultural competence has been demonstrated in previous nursing literature to be key towards improving health outcomes among patients. METHOD: This study employed a mixed-method, single-blind, parallel-group controlled before-and-after experimental trial design that took place in England and Japan. It aimed to recruit 45 residents of long-term care homes aged ≥65 years, possess sufficient cognitive and physical health and who self-identify with the English, Indian or Japanese culture (n = 15 each). Participants were allocated to either the experimental group, control group 1 or control group 2 (all n = 15). Those allocated to the experimental group or control group 1 received a Pepper robot programmed with the CARESSES culturally competent artificial intelligence (experimental group) or a limited version of this software (control group 1) for 18 h across 2 weeks. Participants in control group 2 did not receive a robot and continued to receive care as usual. Participants could also nominate their informal carer(s) to participate. Quantitative data collection occurred at baseline, after 1 week of use, and after 2 weeks of use with the latter time-point also including qualitative semi-structured interviews that explored their experience and perceptions further. Quantitative outcomes of interest included perceptions of robotic cultural competence, health-related quality of life, loneliness, user satisfaction, attitudes towards robots and caregiver burden. DISCUSSION: This trial adds to the current preliminary and limited pool of evidence regarding the benefits of socially assistive robots for older adults which to date indicates considerable potential for improving outcomes. It is the first to assess whether and to what extent cultural competence carries importance in generating improvements to well-being. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Name of the registry: ClinicalTrials.govTrial registration number: NCT03756194.Date of registration: 28 November 2018. URL of trial registry record.