Social Robots as a Means of Integration? an Explorative Acceptance Study considering Gender and Non-verbal Behaviour

Abstract

The integration of migrants and refugees is currently a severe challenge for European states. Especially the imparting of culture- and gender-specific behaviours is an important issue. Social robots might be a valuable tool to introduce refugees to culture-specific behaviours of their host country. In this paper, we investigate the general acceptance of a social robot as well as users' perception of a robot presenting stereo-typical Arabic vs. German female non-verbal behaviour to Syrian newcomers to Germany. Our preliminary study revealed a generally positive attitude towards robots and the idea of an educational robot. Culture-specific manipulations were reflected in participants' partial preference for the Arabic version, but not in participants' perceptual ratings.