Robot Transparency and Team Orientation Effects on Human–Robot Teaming

Abstract

Human–robot team members often have to interact in a situation when the team members are not physically collocated requiring effective communication to establish and maintain effective human–robot performance. Previous research suggests that characteristics of robot communication can have positive impact on human–robot interaction outcomes such as trust, situation awareness, workload, and performance. In this study, we investigated the joint effects of robot communication transparency (low to high, increasing the amount of information provided through text messages) and team orientation (i.e., robot’s text messages communicating team membership with We statements) properties of messages sent by a ground robot to a human teammate who was responsible for supervisory control. The results showed both benefits and limitations of increased transparency indicating the importance of careful implementation of transparency methods. Team orientation manipulation showed to be ineffective (and potentially detrimental) also indicating that caution needs to be exercised when implementing elements intended to improve group cohesion and team inclusiveness. Limitations and future directions are discussed.