Person-friendly robot interaction: social, psychological and technological impacts in health care work

This paper explores social, psychological and technological impacts of surgical robot applications in health care environments. The introduction of novel medical and surgical robot technologies is changing the practice of medicine. The aim is to analyze how technological, social and psychological factors mutually affect person-friendly robot interaction, including the major determinants of utility, usability, and acceptability. The empirical inquiry consists of a qualitative case study of professional clinicians in two medical departments that have been studied through interviews, observations and examination of written records. As the study shows, interfaces of surgical robots should harmonize to the characteristics of human users. The appropriate allocation of tasks and capabilities between the robot, the surgeon, assistant surgeons and other members in the operation team proves to be a dilemma. The design of separate approaches to the social and technical systems of HRI is not sufficient. Instead, the proper technology is the one that best fits the entire situation.