Love me or fear me? Unraveling the paradox of anthropomorphism and interaction willingness in the shadow of uncanny valley effect and theory of mind /

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Student Theses

2025

Huang, Yuhui

Thesis

Objectives: The coexistence of humans and robots in the same society is no longer distant since Sophia became the first robot citizen. Humanoid robots are becoming increasingly human-like, triggering people’s theory of mind and winning people’s hearts. However, they may also threaten people with their increased anthropomorphism, which is known as the uncanny valley effect. There is still a lack of a consensus of how robots' anthropomorphism affects people's attitudes through the uncanny valley effect and the theory of mind. Limited studies investigated the interaction effect between appearance and behavior anthropomorphism. Understanding these questions can contribute to human-robot interaction, alleviating labor shortages, and promoting human well-being. Methods: Drawing on the uncanny valley effect and the theory of mind, this study conducted a 2 by 2 between-subjects design to examine how appearance anthropomorphism and behavior anthropomorphism affect interaction willingness through uncanny valley effect and theory of mind, and. Data were analyzed using SPSS 29 with a sample of 100 participants. Results: Results showed that appearance anthropomorphism significantly increased theory of mind and uncanny valley effect, theory of mind positively predicted interaction willingness, and uncanny valley effect negatively predicted interaction willingness. Besides, the robot with smooth body movement and machine-like face triggered the least negative feelings and was most acceptable. However, no interaction effects were found. Conclusions: This study provided evidence and advanced the understanding of the uncanny valley effect and the theory of mind in the context of humanoid robots. The findings provided practically valuable insight into overcoming humanoid robots' negative impact on human beings, contributing to the creation of a harmonious human-robot interaction relationship and the promotion of human mental health during the interaction

LG51.H43 MSSP(SCS) 2025eb Huangy

https://educoll.lib.eduhk.hk/records/DpF6oSxt